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A plain and faithful narrative of the original design, rise, progress and present state of the Indian charity-school at Lebanon, in Connecticut. Eleazar Wheelock
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A plain and faithful narrative of the original design, rise, progress and present state of the Indian charity-school at Lebanon, in Connecticut
NARRATIVE
"The Liberal deviseth liberal Things, and by liberal Things
"shall he stand."–Isai. xxxii. 8.
"The liberal Soul shall be made fat, and he that watereth
"shall also be watered himself."–Prov. xi. 25.
May it please your Lordship,
That Charity and disinterested Care for the Souls of Men, which make so amiable a Part of your Lordship's Character, and give a Lustre and Grace to all those worldly Honours with which God has dignified you, and entitle you to the kindest Wishes, and sincerest Prayers of all who love our Lord Jesus Christ, and long for the Enlargement of his Kingdom in the World; do now embolden me to inscribe the following Narrative to your Lordship, as a Testimonial of my Gratitude, for that repeated Liberality, whereby you have testified your Approbation of our feeble Attempts in the important Affair here related, and given your Sanction to the Plan we have been prosecuting.
And as you have animated and encouraged our small Beginnings, when we had most need of such Countenance and Assistance; so your Condescention and Generosity have made me solicitous how to manifest my Gratitude suitably to a Personage of such Distinction.
But as your Lordship could propose no other End, besides that which we were pursuing, when you thus opened your Hand for our Assistance therein, while it was yet small and obscure; so I may reasonably suppose, nothing I can return will give your Lordship more Satisfaction, than a plain, and concise Account of the Progress of it, and our still growing and encreasing Prospects of those good Effects, which will be the only Reward which your Lordship could have in View.
And though it be presented to your Lordship in a very plain and unfashionable Dress, agreeable to the Country from whence it comes, yet I am perswaded your Lordship will not despise it on that Account, since the Dress, plain and unfashionable as it is, does so much excel the savage, and sordid Habit, and Appearance of those miserable Creatures, who have so moved your Lordship's Compassion as to become the Objects of your Charity and Beneficence. Nor will Modesty itself under such endearing and inviting Expressions of your Lordship's Condescention and Goodness, forbid our reposing Confidence in you as our Patron, or indulging the animating Expectation of future Benefit by your Smiles on this infant Institution.
May the Blessing of many, who shall, in the present and succeeding Generations, reap the Benefit of your generous Donations, come upon you.
And that God may graciously lengthen out your valuable and important Life, to refresh the Bowels of his Saints, and encourage THIS, and every Attempt to make known the Name of Christ, "and manifest the Savour of his Knowledge in every Place," and late confer upon you a Crown of Life with distinguished Honours, is the earnest Prayer of,
May it please your Lordship,
Your Lordship's
much obliged, and
most obedient
humble Servant,
Eleazar Wheelock.
Lebanon, Dec. 16. 1762.
Original Design, Rise, Progress and present State of the INDIAN CHARITY-SCHOOL in Lebanon.
Understanding there are Numbers of religious and charitably disposed Persons, who only wait to know where their Charities may be bestowed in the best Manner for the Advancement of the Kingdom of the great Redeemer; and, supposing there may also be in some, evil Surmisings about, and a Disposition to discredit a Cause which they don't love, and have no Disposition to promote; I have, to gratify the one, and prevent the Mischiefs of the other, thought it my Duty to give the Publick a short, plain, and faithful Narrative of the Original Design, Rise, Progress, and present State of the Charity-School here, called Moor's Indian-Charity School, &c. And I hope there is need of little or nothing more than a plain and faithful Relation of Facts, with the Grounds and Reasons of them, to justify the Undertaking, and all the Pains and Expence there has been, in the Prosecution thereof. And to convince all Persons of Ability, that this School is a proper Object of their Charity; and that whatever they shall contribute for the Furtherance of it, will be an Offering acceptable to God, and properly bestowed for the promoting a Design which the Heart of the great Redeemer is infinitely set upon.
The Considerations first moving me to enter upon the Design of educating the Children of our Heathen Natives were such as these; viz.
The great Obligations lying upon us, as God's Covenant-People, who have all we have better than they in a Covenant Way, and consequently are under Covenant-Bonds to improve it in the best Manner for the Honour and Glory of our liberal Benefactor. And can such Want of Charity to those poor Creatures, as our Neglect has shewn; and, our Neglect of that which God has so plainly made to be the Matter of our Care and Duty; and that which the Heart of the great Redeemer is so set upon, as that he never desired any other Compensation for all the Travail of his Soul, can it, I say, be without great Guilt on our Part?
It has seem'd to me, he must be stupidly indifferent to the Redeemer's Cause and Interest in the World; and criminally deaf and blind to the Intimations of the Favour and Displeasure of God in the Dispensations of his Providence, who could not perceive plain Intimations of God's Displeasure against us for this Neglect, inscribed in Capitals, on the very Front of divine Dispensations, from Year to Year, in permitting the Savages to be such a sore Scourge to our Land, and make such Depredations on our Frontiers, inhumanly butchering and captivating our People; not only in a Time of War, but when we had good Reason to think (if ever we had) that we dwelt safely by them.
And there is good Reason to think, that if one half which has been, for so many Years past expended in building Forts, manning and supporting them, had been prudently laid out in supporting faithful Missionaries, and School-Masters among them, the instructed and civilized Party would have been a far better Defence than all our expensive Fortresses, and prevented the laying waste so many Towns and Villages: Witness the Consequence of sending Mr. Sergeant to Stockbridge, which was in the very Road by which they most usually came upon our People, and by which there has never been one Attack made upon us since his going there; and this notwithstanding there has been, by all Accounts, less Appearance of the saving Effects of the Gospel there than in any other Place, where so much has been expended for many Years past.
And not only our Covenant Bonds, by which we owe our all to God, and our divine Redeemer—our Pity to their Bodies in their miserable, needy State—our Charity to their perishing Souls—and our own Peace, and Safety by them, should constrain us to it; but also Gratitude, Duty, and Loyalty to our rightful Sovereign. How great the Benefit which would hereby accrue to the Crown of Great-Britain, and how much the Interests of His Majesty's Dominions, especially in America, would be promoted hereby, we can hardly conceive.
And the Christianizing the Natives of this Land is expressly mentioned in the Royal Charter granted to this Colony, as a Motive inducing His Majesty to grant that Royal Favour to our Fathers. And since we are risen up in their Stead, and enjoy the inestimable Favour granted to them, on this Consideration; What can excuse our not performing to our utmost, that which was engaged by, and reasonably expected from, them? But that which is of greatest Weight, and should powerfully excite and perswade us hereto, are the many Commands, strong Motives, precious Promises, and tremendous Threatnings, which fill so great a Part of the sacred Pages; and are so perfectly calculated to awaken all our Powers, to spread the Knowledge of the only true God, and Saviour, and make it as extensive and common as possible. It is a Work, in which every one in his Place, and according to his Ability, is under sacred Bonds to use his utmost Endeavours. But for Brevity sake, I omit a particular Mention of them, supposing none have read their Bibles attentively, who do not know, that this is a darling Subject of them; and that enough is there spoken by the Mouth of God himself, to obviate and silence all the Objections which Sloth, Covetousness, or Love of the World can suggest against it; and to assure them it is not a Course