Wesley Corpus

As the young gentlemen are scattered over this town, and live without the least control, they do anything, or nothing, as they please; and as they have no tutors, they have none to check them. Most of them lounge from morning to night, doing nothing, or doing worse. Well, bad as they are, Oxford and Cambridge are not Utrecht yet. 348 Rev. J. Wesley’s [Sept. 1786. Sun. 27.--I attended the Service at the English church; where about thirty persons were present. At five in the evening I believe I had eighty or ninety hearers; and I had much liberty of speech among them. I cannot doubt but some of them found the word of God to be sharper than a two-edged sword. After Service I went once more to Mr. Loten’s. Both Mrs. Loten and he came to town on purpose to see me; otherwise, he could find little comfort there, during the present state of affairs. The Burghers have all agreed to depose their Burgomasters, and elect new ones in their stead ; who are to-morrow to take an oath on a scaffold erected in the open market-place, not to the Prince of Orange, but to the city of Utrecht. To this end, they had displaced all the Prince's Guards, and placed Burghers at all the gates. It is thought the example will spread; and it will not be strange if all Holland should soon be a field of blood. Mon. 28.--We took boat at seven, being informed that at eight all the city-gates would be shut. In the evening we reached Rotterdam, and rejoiced to meet good Mr. Loyal once more. Here we rested on Tuesday. Wednesday, 30. We set out early, and went twelve miles in a coach, for which we had to pay six guilders and no more. We then crossed the river, which cost four stivers, and hired an open waggon for twenty-three stivers, which brought us to the other river in half an hour. At the Brill we hired another coach, which cost us four guilders. I set down these little things that others may not be cheated. We found company enough in our inn at Helvoetsluys, genteel, good-natured, and sensible; but finding our conversa tion was not suited to their taste, we only dined with them on this and the following days.