LETTER OF
The GOSPEL TRUTH 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
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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.