The GOSPEL TRUTH
LETTER OF

CHARLES G. FINNEY

1841

To Hamilton Hill

1 December 1841

 

[In Oberlin College Archives, 7/1/5.]

 

Boston 1. Dec. 1841.

Dr. Br. Hill.

I have shewed your letter to Br. Walker &

told him that I had avised you to loan the money.

I said nothing to him however about having intimated

that it might perhaps be loaned of him. He read

the letter & remarked that at least a part of it

might be gotten in small donations. & the rest

might be borrowed. Br. Sears thinks so too. I yester

day had a request to go to Lowell & preach. The writer

the Rev. Mr. Hanks concluded by saying. "We shall at

least make you a satisfactory remuneration for your pers

onal services & I hope [to] raise something for the benefit of the

Institution with which you are connected." I found

the state of things in this region at the low water mark in

regard to every thing good, almost. But blessed be the Lord

He has come to our help by his spirit. The interest here is incre

asing & it is beginning to be felt in the region around us.

Could Br. Dawes come down soon. I think that some

thing might be done. Let him Get a list of the subscribers

to the O. Evangelist & he will, I think, collect more or less of

nearly all of them. The spirit they breath warrants this [belief].

He would probably at present get but few large donations

But the more I think of it the more confident I am

that enough might be obtained in that way between

now & the time the payment of that mortgage becomes

due, to pay it off without further trouble.

 

[page 2]

The fact is the wants of the Institution are not known.

Several readers of the Evangelist from out of Town have

called & handed me small sums for the O.E. Society

unsolicited. The fact is that the most pious & liberal men

in nearly all the churches in this country are readers

of the O. Evangelist & take a most tender interest

in the Institution. Now two great Objects need to be

& I am pursuaded on reflection, may be accomplished.

1. A deeper interest may be excited in the O.E. & in the

Institution & at the same time a large amount of money

might be collected if Br. Dawes would take an extensive

tour among the readers of the Evangelist. Its subscription

list might be doubled, & indeed vast good be accomplished

in many ways. Br. Dawes would find that the Evangelist

has prepared his way & would save him a world of Talk.

Its readers are the decided friends of the Institution &

the opposition of ministers & others only increases their

sympathy & makes them the more ready to give all they

do & can give, to support the Institution. It would have

been a great thing could the Institution in its pecuniary

want have been represented at the convention at

Rochester last summer. Should Br. Dawes conclude

to come on while I am here, which I think he had better

do by all means. I think it might be well to call a

convention at Boston on the subject of holiness & have

him make an appeal in behalf of the Institution.

I strongly suspect that just now is a most favorable

juncture to get friends for the Institution among

readers of the Evangelist. And if am not much

 

[page 3]

mistaken, a large amount of money might be now collected

for the Institution & the subscription list of the paper doubled.

My Br. lay this upon Br. Dawes' heart & if I am not mistaken

his spirit will travel with desire until this work is done.

I think from 10 to 20 thousand dollars might in this way be

obtained in a few months without being obliged every

where to tell the story of the Institution as in England.

The fact is the story of the Institution is already told to

the readers of the Evangelist. They only need to visited

& prayed with & the wants of the Institution to be

made known by Br Dawes himself & they will give

what they can. They believe in entire consecration

& I am persuaded that among them we would co[ll]

ect funds more easily than ever before. Few o[f them]

are great capitalists & few of them are much in d[ebt?]

Many of them are able to give something & while all

other clases of professors are dead, or nearly so. the

readers of the O.E. are alive & I am pursuaded,

from what I have seen of them, ready to do something.

Let Br. Dawes by all means be an agent for the Evangelist &

for the Institution. Give my most christian love to Br. Dawes

& tell him to sally forth in the name of the Lord.

My health still good for me. Present my christian

salutations to Mrs. Hill & to all friends.

Your Brother.

C. G. Finney.

 

Addressed: Hamilton Hill Esqr.

Oberlin. Lorain co.

Ohio.

 

Postmark: BOSTON [MS] DEC 2

 

Footnote:

 

The d has been omitted from advised.

The paper has been cut here which has removed some sections of the text. This word appears to have been collect.