Pennsylvania, and John Blair Smith, of Hampden Sidney, Virginia, and of Union College, New York.

The elder brother, Samuel Stanhope, who was graduated at Princeton 1769, having become the head of the rising institution in Prince Edward, Virginia, under the care of the Presbytery of Hanover, the attention of Samuel Blair was turned, by this brother, to the same institution, in the summer after the Presbytery had declared formally its existence and location. On the 9th of November 1775, the day Samuel Stanhope Smith was installed pastor of Cumberland and Prince Edward, Presbytery was informed that two assistants had been engaged, agreeably to their order, John B. Smith, and John Springer, a graduate of Princeton of the Class of 1775. In the May following, on Saturday 4th, 1776-Presbytery were informed that Mr. John B. Smith had came on according to engagement, and was then engaged in teaching; and as Mr. Springer had been detained from entering the work, Mr. Samuel Doak, his classmate, had been employed in his room.

While filling the station of tutor, Mr. Smith pursued his studies preparatory to the ministry under the direction of his brother. On the 18th of June 1777, at a meeting of the Presbytery of Hanover, at Concord, Bedford county, he offered himself as a "probationer for the gospel ministry;"-" and producing a certificate from Newcastle Presbytery recommending him to our care, we therefore take him under our care for further trials." On the next day he read an Exegesis on a subject assigned him by a member of Presbytery—“ An supplicum apud infernos set æternum;" which was approved. The Presbytery then gave him for further trials a Homily on Regeneration, a Sermon on Rom. iii. 24, and a Lecture on Daniel ix. 24th to 27th. The records of the Presbyterial meetings at which these parts of trial were exhibited, are lost. On Tuesday the 29th of April, 1778, at Tinkling Spring, Mr. Smith opened Presbytery with a popular sermon on 1 John iii. 1,—and on the evening of the same day at the house of the pastor Mr. James Waddell "the Presbytery having now taken a full view of his whole performance, and being well satisfied therewith, do agree to license the said John B. Smith to preach the gospel as a probationer, and he is licensed therefore accordingly." On the 26th of October 1779, at Prince Edward Court House "Mr. John Blair Smith, having delivered a sermon on the subject assigned him at our last (the record of that meeting lost,) previous to his ordination, the Presbytery proceeded to set him solemnly apart to the sacred work of the gospel ministry, by the imposition of hands and prayer. This done he now takes his seat with us as a member of Presbytery."

At the same meeting of Presbytery, October 28th, the President of Hampden Sidney College having received an invitation to the chair of Moral Philosophy in Princeton College, asked leave to resign the Presidency of the College, and requested a dissolution of the pastoral office. Upon deliberation, Presbytery granted both requests; and immediately appointed John Blair Smith President of the College. April 25th 1780, at Tinkling Spring, a call from the congregation of Cumberland and Briery, was given in to be presented to Mr. J. B. Smith; which he now accepts of." The time of his installation is not given in the records of Presbytery.

About this time he was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Nash, daughter of Colonel John Nash of Templeton, Prince Edward, one of the most accomplished ladies of her day, whose piety became as eminent as her personal charms; and both combined rendered her the ornament of society. She bore him four sons and one daughter.

The Rev. William Hill, D. D., of Winchester, one of the few surviving persons that attended on his instructions in College, from whose manuscript recollections of him large quotations will be made, partly in his own words, and partly condensed to suit the limits of this work,-says-"There was more fervour and animation in his preaching than was common in those days, for he was always a very attractive and popular preacher, and drew crowds after him, for it was one of his peculiar properties to put out his strength in every thing he undertook, and to do nothing by halves. But still for some years his preaching seemed to take no effect, there was no awakening of sinners-arousing of cold professors, nor reclaiming of backsliders, as the visible fruits of his labours. The troubles of the Revolutionary war were waxing worse and worse, and were drawing nigher and nigher, so that the British army was now in the midst of his people committing desperate outrages; and at length caused a suspension of public worship in his congregation and broke up entirely the business of the College.'

Patrick Henry, the first Governor of the State under the new constitution, issued a requisition for militia for the defence. of the State. The students of the College with full consent of the President, volunteered to answer this call of the Governor, one of the Trustees, and marched with their tutor J. B. Smith, a student of theology, as their captain, to the defence of the capital. With compliments from the Governor, he was sent back after the alarm was over-as able to aid more effectually in the College than in camp-while some of the students were encouraged to enter the service and others to return to their studies.

When General Greene, covering the retreat of Morgan, with his prisoners, after the battle of the Cowpens, entered Virginia in the early part of 1781, Captain William Morton of Charlotte, in about two days, called a company of his neighbours, and set out for Greene's camp. President Smith felt it his duty to offer his services, by way of encouragement to his parishioners, and joined the company in Halifax, on the evening of the first day's march. The captain, his friend, and elder in the church, with much difficulty persuaded him, exhausted in body and with blistered feet, to refrain from the fatigues of the camp, and return to cheer the families of his charge with his presence and counsels.

It is also reported that when news of the depredations of the British forces on the Chesapeake reached Prince Edward, a short time previous to the arrival of Greene, he prepared for a campaign. When Cornwallis invaded Virginia the services of the College were for a time suspended; and all able to bear arms in Prince Edward and the surrounding counties sought the camp. In this state of things it was decided that Smith should remain with the people left at home. After the capture of the invading general at York, the men returned to their homes, the College studies were resumed, and the congregations became more regular.

"The demoralizing effects of the war" says Dr. Hill—“left religion and the church in a most deplorable condition. The Sabbath had been almost forgotten, and the public morals sadly deteriorated. A cold and lukewarm indifference was manifest in all the ministrations of the gospel throughout all that region of country, without exception, as far as known. Hampden Sidney College alone appeared to revive, and the number of students continued to increase until the rooms were as full as they well could contain." Mr. Smith's impressive manner of preaching drew after him large audiences, but with little apparent effect till about the year 1787, when-"some degree of seriousness appeared to prevail, without any extraordinary efforts, or peculiar instrumentalities, calculated to produce a general awakening, beyond the ordinary means of grace. There were very few Baptists, or Methodists, or any other religious denomination of Christians in these regions, besides Presbyterians." About this time also the Methodists and Baptists began to visit the country. James O'Kelly, a popular Methodist preacher of original genius, from North Carolina, made some appointments not far from College. One of the students by name of William Spencer became a convert, left College and commenced preaching. But his eccentric character, added to his slender abilities and small literary attainments, prevented his usefulness. His uniting with the Methodists produced no

good effect on the College students; it rather excited disgust. O'Kelly gained some followers; but their character and standing were not such as to produce any very general effect. About this same time Mr. John Williams, a Baptist, preached extensively in the counties of Mecklenburg, Lunenburg and Charlotte. He was possessed-" of genuine talents, ready utterance and great fluency of speech, and was in fact a very pleasing, impressive and popular preacher, and gentlemanly in his manners and deportment. His preaching in Lunenburg and Charlotte, bordered upon the congregation of Briery, and several young persons became impressed under Mr. Williams' preaching. This called the attention of Mr. Smith more particularly to that part of his charge; his meetings were more frequent and his addresses more earnest and pungent. No general effect was produced further than increased seriousness in the congregation; and more prayer was offered for blessings from on high.

The state of things in College, during the year 1787 was peculiarly interesting; the flax was smoking; and soon burnt into a flame. While a few children of pious parents treated the subject of religion respectfully, yet" of all the students in College, about eighty in number, there was not one who was known to be any way serious and thoughtful upon the subject of religion; they were generally very vicious and profane, and treated religion and religious persons with great contempt and ridicule; though attentive to their studies and the acquisition of knowledge.' While there were none known to be "serious and thoughtful," there were many really so-and as is usual in such cases, each thought himself alone in his exercises, experiencing that deep feeling of solitariness which usually accompanies conviction of sin and danger. "I was"-says a venerable clergyman now living, one of the few that heard J. B. Smith in Prince Edward and survive-in a letter to F. N. Watkins of Farmville-"I was born in the year 1772; I was myself seriously and deeply exercised on the subject of religion from a child, through the instrumentality of my parents who were pious. But I saw nothing, heard nothing like an awakening among the people, till I was a student at Hampden Sidney a while. I went there at the age of fourteen years, the only serious boy amongst sixty or eighty students, and was often laughed at on account of my religious principles; but by the grace of God, I was never ashamed on that account; but reproved them for their want of reverence for the authority of God. At that time I did not think I had religion, but was much engaged in the use of all appointed means to obtain it. After I was there one or two sessions, I saw and heard of, for the first time, a seriousness and deep concern in Briery congre

gation; and about the same time, in Cumberland congregation. Christians became greatly quickened, and awakenings amongst the dead in sins multiplied in quick succession.'

The precise time is not known of the formation of a prayermeeting, by Mr. Smith, consisting of the elders of the church, but one was formed in 1786 or 1787, to meet and pray for a special outpouring of the Spirit of God. Many difficulties were encountered in its formation; some plead they could not, were not fit to pray before others, especially their minister; others that they could pray in a small meeting, and not in a large. But under the exhortations of their minister, and their own sense of duty and privilege, the Elders' prayer-meeting became a delightful place; and from holding a private meeting, they began to hold praying circles, as they were called, in different parts of the congregations where a few could assemble. The spirit of prayer and inquiry increased together. "During the progress of the revival in Cumberland"-says the letter to F. N. Watkins-"in the time of vacation at the College, Messrs. Cary Allen and William Hill went on a visit to their relations, who had become subjects of the work of grace, and they were deeply impressed with a sense of their last condition, and exposure to the wrath of God." This was in September 1787. This visit resulted in the conversion of Allen, and ultimately in the conversion of young Hill. The circumstances of Allen's awakening will be given more appropriately in the sketch of his life. It is necessary to state at present nothing more than, he had been brought up correctly, was a moral youth, of eccentric feelings and peculiar talents; that his convictions were deep, and in fact overwhelming, and resulted in the possession of a hope. On his return to College to renew his studies he carried his profession of conversion with him. The President-" was exceedingly fearful it was all a delusion, and put him through the most rigid examinations, set him to reading Bellamy's True Religion delineated and distinguished from all counterfeits, and his Paulinus and Theron." Allen read and bore examination on his experience, and held to his profession of religion—and, says Dr. Hill—"was the first student who made any public pretensions to religion in College.

"There was another student in college" says Dr. Hill"whose mind had been serious for some months before Allen professed conversion; but who kept it a profound secret from any one, for fear of persecution and ridicule from his wicked associates; for he had been as wicked as any of them. No one had spoken to him a word upon the subject of religion, and yet he was under deep conviction from the strivings of God's Spirit. A pious mother who had brought him up most carefully, and instructed him in religious things most earnestly, had been