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M.E. CONFERENCE, BROMFIELD ST. CHURCH, BOSTON.

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The Old New-England Conference.

WE have given, in the preceding pages, sketches of distinguished men in various fields of Methodism-Wesley, Fletcher, and Bunting in England Garrettson, Emory, Levings, and Olin in the middle American ConferencesRoberts and M'Kendree in the West-Hedding, Pickering, and Fisk in the East. In presenting these individual examples, we have been aware how many noble names are omitted, and have wished that our space would allow a fuller representation of each, if it had even to be in an aggregate form. The beautiful and remarkably truthful plate, which we here insert, enables us to do so in respect to New-England, with the hope that in some subsequent volume we may find it possible to represent, in similar manner, other divisions of our great evangelical field.

The engraving is a very accurate representation of the interior of the old Bromfield-street Church, Boston-a locale of sanctified reminiscences to Eastern Methodists. The scene is now entirely transformed; it has given place to one of the noblest chapels of American Methodism; but no one who worshipped within the old structure will ever forget, amid the modernized and beautiful conveniences of the new one, the precious associations of those days when

Hedding, Pickering, Merritt, Mudge, Kibby, Brodhead, Fillmore, Lindsay, and others of the old Legio Fulminea, thundered from its pulpit. It has been the most powerful battery of Methodism in New-England-occupied by its most powerful evangelists, and the gathering place of its most powerful corps of membership.

The portraits in the engraving are mostly correct likenesses-remarkably accurate if we consider the diminished scale upon which they are presented. TIMOTHY MERRITT, one of the intellectual champions of the denomination, stands in the pulpit. He was a thoroughly devoted man, and though now crumbling in the dust of the sepulchre, his influence is still felt through New-England, especially among such as are personally interested in that great distinction of our theology, the doctrine of Christian Perfection-a favourite theme of his pen and his preaching. Some of his literary works have taken permanent rank in our Book-Concern Catalogue. Take him all in all, he was, perhaps, in his day, the foremost man in the New-England Methodist ministry;-wise in counsel, powerful in the pulpit, formidable in controversy, holy in life.

Beside him sits GEORGE PICKERING, whose features will compare well with those of the larger engraving, given elsewhere in this volume. His attitude, even to the position of the hands, will be recalled by those who have seen him in the old Bromfield-street pulpit. DR. FISK is addressing the Conference at the foot of the pulpit-stairs. The artist has somewhat idealized his head and features, but not more so than the English painter in the larger likeness given with our sketch of him. In the present instance the outline of his person is accurately given, even to the old clerical style of dress, which he did not disdain to copy

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