Rev A Brandram No. 44
Lucea, 28th September 1835
My Dear Friend,
I told you if I recollect right, in one of my late letters, that from Montego Bay I intended to fall back upon the parish of Hanover, and on finishing my business there, to return again to Montego Bay, and from thence move onwards, and if I may so speak, homewards, through the parishes of Trelawney and St. Ann's, to Kingston. The first part of this movement is taken, namely, my visit to Hanover, and the second I intend, if the Lord will, to undertake tomorrow. In the meantime allow me to lay before you the state of your concerns in this parish of Hanover of which Lucea, the spot where I now am, is the capital or parish town.
We have in the Rector of this parish, the Rev. Mr. Stainsby, an old and good friend. On my arrival here, I delivered to this gentleman, a letter of introduction which I received for him from the Secretary of the Church Missionary Society in October 1831, nearly as you perceive four years ago. Little did you or I think, at the dating of this letter, that this mission would last so long, and little did we think of the gracious openings that would be met with in my tour throughout these colonies, for the circulation of the Holy Scriptures. Let us rejoice in what God has wrought, let us give glory only and solely to his own Blessed Name, and let us exert ourselves to turn these openings to the greatest advantage in promoting the kingdom of heaven.
Well, my letter of introduction as I said, as old as it was, was at length duly delivered. You would not expect me to say after all this, that my introductory note, from this very respectable quarter and to this worthy gentleman was of no use, but such was the fact. The truth is, the Bible, and the Bible Society object which form the burden of my poor labours was introduction and recommendation to our good friend above all others, and thus superseded and rendered without effect any notes from any quarter. The Curate of the Parish, Mr. Stone, I found equally interested in the Great Bible Cause, and so were in like manner the Baptist missionaries, Mr. Abbott and Mr. Ward, and also Mr. Bleby of the Wesleyan Mission. Several persons in this town and neighbourhood we also found friendly to our objects and ready to promote them. Having these materials for a Society, and the public feeling generally in our favour, we made arrangements for holding a public meeting in the Court House, for explaining to all who might come the Bible Society plans and operations, and for giving a general invitation to all to join us in this holy object of making God's will to be known upon and all over the earth, for the purpose of its being also done, and God hereby glorified, and the world blessed.
On the 11th instant our meeting was held after being duly advertised. We chose the evening as the best time for expecting a large assemblage, and our expectations were not disappointed, for the meeting was numerously attended. We had on this occasion, as well as Montego Bay as formerly noticed, the pleasure of seeing the Ladies present themselves in order to hear, feel, and be interested in this work of circulating a book which has done so much for them in particular, besides what it has done for all. The number present at our Lucea a meeting was greater than it was in Montego Bay, for there it was new and our number was small, because one and another was hindered from attending feeling that it would be an impropriety, and that none else would be there, and so forth. Here we had the advantage of their precurring example, and besides we took means more than we had there done, to induce them to attend.
Altogether the meeting was very respectable and encouraging. I need not tell you what this one said and put that one brought forward, as I send you a newspaper which will in some measure place these things before you. One thing however I may say as the substance of what was spoken, namely, the advocacy of the circulation of the Scriptures in this parish, in this island, and over the world. We all say no doubt better than we do; and there are many who speak about circulating the Scriptures, and sincerely approve of reading them, whilst the readers and the studiers and obeyers of the sacred volume are not over numerous. Nevertheless it is pleasing to see such numbers cordially acquiesce in and recommend the general distribution and use of the word of life. Readers without doubt will increase as the Bible is numerically multiplied, and in not a few cases herein perhaps will it prove the first shall be last, and the last first; or in other words those who sent forth the Scriptures and recommended the reading of them will be the last, whilst those to whom they sent and gave them will be the first. This is an encouragement to us to labour, and an admonition to us to watch and to pray.
On the 14th we held the first meeting of our Committee which was well attended. We framed on this occasion the necessary By laws for the regulation of the Committee in conducting the affairs of the Society. We also took a glance at the whole extent of our parish and fixed upon certain spots on which Bible Associations might be formed; and in order to carry these better into effect, we pitched upon some two, three or more individuals near these spots respectively, and friendly to our purposes, and agreed to invite them to lend us their aid in commencing and in carrying on these same associations.
On Sunday the 20th I went to Green Island, a place quite at the West End of our Jamaica. Here I preached in the Baptist Chapel in the forenoon, and at the same treated of our Bible Society operations and purposes, recommending to all who felt well disposed to these objects that they should go to the church close by in the afternoon, when we would all meet on the grand, broad foundation, not of sectarianism, but of Bible Unity. About half an hour after the service closed I went up to the church which stands on the adjoining mount, and was followed by a long train. When we got up we found Mr. Stone, the curate formerly mentioned, and his congregation getting ready for us. As soon as all had got in and were settled down I addressed them immediately on the object of our meeting, and encouraged all present to enter into a Bible Association for their own good as I pointed out to them it would be, and for the good of the world which they might benefit by their united help, more or less now and amply after they should have procured the Scriptures for themselves. On concluding these explanations and recommendations, numbers came forward, and about 100 put down their names as subscribers. We could have got many more, but we were obliged to stop with our lists as the time for the afternoon service came on. Arrangements however were made for taking the names of all well disposed to this object in this district which is pretty populous, and I should think there will be 500 contributions and upwards before long to the Green Island Bible Association commenced as above stated.
On the 21st we held a second meeting of our Committee in Lucea, at which appeared the same cordiality and interest in the object engaged in as were manifested previously, and when the same operations were further attended to which had been commenced at the first meeting.
On the following day we had a meeting of a different kind, or rather, composed of different individuals. It was a meeting of Ladies, and was held at the Rector's house, where we counted 22 present of various ranks and colours, for there is no respect of persons with God and with the Bible, and there should be none in a Bible Society. The Ladies who assembled on this occasion have been visited at their own houses by Mr. Stainsby and myself on the preceding week, when we explained to them our object, and the part we wished them to taken it after the example of our English Ladies, the first and best Ladies in the world herein, and probably also in all things else.
At a meeting of the sub-Committee of our Parish Bible Society held some days previous to this Ladies meeting, we had arranged for forming a Lucea Bible Association, and had divided the town into four districts, three of which were placed respectively under the care of the three ministers at present settled in Lucea, and the fourth fell into the hands of our Treasurer. After explaining to the Ladies this division of the town into parts and for what purposes, and telling them that the gentleman who had taken immediate charge of these would visit that districts from house to house and would afterwards beg to employ them to assist in collecting from month to month the sums put down by the various subscribers, they cordially agreed to these arrangements, and promised their willing help as far as their abilities and opportunities would permit. This being agreed to, the 22 ladies present were divided and distributed among the four gentleman and their four districts, which concluded the business of our meeting. We were helped on this occasion by the Barbados Ladies, inasmuch as we had our Barbados newspaper before us giving an account of their good working in that island, and which paper I suppose you have seen, bearing the date of 8th August last. I read this account to our little assembly and commented on it, in which I was assisted by one of those same Barbados Bible Society Ladies who has lately come from that to this island, and who formed one of our 22. Mrs. Padmore, the lady in question, from her well known, steady religious and active character, we expect to be of great service in our Bible Society concerns in this place.
Yesterday I preached at the Presbyterian Church in this town, and made a collection for our Bible Society agreeable to an arrangement that had been entered into at one of the meetings of our general Committee, namely, that a sermon should be preached at all the places of worship in the parish, and collections made for the Society. The Presbyterian minister being absent from the island I took his place as above stated.
I cannot conclude my notices of the Hanover Bible Society, and Lucea without saying that we have in Mr. Costello an individual who bids fair to be a most industrious and intelligent Secretary, a circumstance of no mean consideration in the permanency and prosperity of any institution.
Tomorrow, as I said, I intend to return to Montego Bay, and after a few days stay there will proceed to Falmouth in the Parish of Trelawney where probably my next letter may be dated. In the meantime remember poor me in my wanderings, and in my poor soul which is poor enough, and in my little attempts to promote and extend the kingdom of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ, that kingdom which is being aggrandized rapidly and highly, and shall never fall. I forgot to say, though I do not forget the doing, that I pray for you daily and perhaps you will allow me to ask a return in kind. O may God Almighty shine on you evermore, and on yours, and on you all through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour: to him be glory forever and forever.
Truly and Affectionately Yours
James Thomson.
Postscript, Montego Bay, 29th September 1835
On coming here I have found in the Post office two letters fromHayti, one of them is dated 27th of May and enclosed the letter I here forward and which has been detained somewhere. The other is dated the 10th current, and is as follows: –"Mon tres estimable Ami: On vient de donner lecture d'une lettre que Monsieur Frith notre commun ami reçu de la Société de Londre pour l'impression de la Bible, par quelle il semble que cette respectable Société n'a pas .... [1] ma lettre de remerciement ainse que l'imprimé y contenu annoncait l'usage que j'ai fait des exemplaires du Nouveau Testament par moi reçus de la susdite Société. El ce qu.. plus etonnant il semble qu'on ait ecrit á la susdite Société que je ... savais pas quel usage je devais faire des susdites exemplaires dans la lettre surmentionée on s'exprime ainsi, 'Nous som... bien etinnés d'apprendre que le Curé Jourdfain ne sacha quel .... faire des cent exemplaires de Nouveau Testament que nous avons ...voyé á Jacmel.' Il semblerait par lá, mon cher ami, que vous n'avez pas reçu ma lettre du 27 Mai année courante dans laque... etait incluse une autre pour les Membres du Comité de cette respetable Société. Ca doute m'afflige beaucoup y je vous prierais de méc... lá-dessus. J'ai l'honneur, mon tres estimable ami, de vous saluar affect..ment: J. Jourdain."
I shall write to our good friend and encourage him by post. Please let Mr Jackson also write him in French or Spanish, and explain and undo the unfavourable report you have received. He will be I trust a valuable auxiliary to us in Jacmel and Hayti.
[1] Certain parts of the postscript are hidden by binding tape and impossible to read and are indicated by '....'.