Wesley Corpus

Bateman’s house, the oddest I ever saw with my eyes. Every thing breathes antiquity; scarce a bedstead is to be seen that is not an hundred and fifty years old; and everything is quite out of the common way: He scorns to have any thing like his neighbours. For six hours, I suppose, these elegant oddities would much delight a curious man; but after six months they would probably give him no more pleasure than a collection of feathers. Mon. DECEMBER 2.--I went down with several of our friends to Gravesend, where a building, designed for an assembly-room, was employed for a better purpose. It was quite crowded; yet abundance could not get in. After read ing Prayers, I preached on part of the Second Lesson, Heb. viii. 9, 10, 11. The Room was pretty well filled at five in the morning. Fair blossoms' But what fruit will there be? Tues. 3.--I preached at Canterbury. Wednesday, 4. I rode to Ashford, one of the pleasantest towns in Kent. The preaching-house, newly fitted up, was well filled with attentive hearers. Hence we hastened to Dover, where the house was quickly filled with serious, well-behaved people. Here I found L H ’s Preachers had gleaned up most of those whom we had discarded. They call them “My Lady’s society,” and have my free leave to do them all the good they can. Thur. 5.--I preached at Sandwich about eleven, and at Canterbury in the evening. Friday, 6. Having preached to a small, but much-affected, company at Sittingbourne, I went on to Chatham. The huge congregation here devoured the word; Dec. 1771.] JOURNAL, 449 yet I hope they digested it too. We were strangely kept from this place for many years: At length there is an open door. Sat. 7.--In my way home I finished the first volume of Mr. Hooke's “Roman History.” On this I remark, 1. That it is immeasurably too long, containing a thousand passages not worth relating: 2. That he relates abundance of contra dictory accounts, often without telling us which is best: 3. That he recites at large the senseless tales of Clelia swimming in the Tyber, Mucius Scaevola, and twenty more; and afterwards knocks them all on the head. What need then of reciting them? We want history; not romance, though compiled by Livy himself. Yet, 4.