IN the late spring of 1840, William Miller, after conducting meetings in Watertown, Mass., and Portland, Me., gave his first course of lectures in New York City, the audiences being large and attentive. During the summer, Josiah Litch was very active on the lecture platform.

An important event of the autumn was the holding of the first General Conference of Adventist believers. This meeting convened in Boston, at the Chardon Street chapel, on October 14, and lasted two days. At the opening session on Wednesday morning, Joshua V. Himes, the officiating pastor of the church, read the call of the conference as follows:

"The undersigned, believers in the second coming and kingdom of the Messiah at hand,' cordially unite in the call of a General Conference of our brethren of the United States and elsewhere, who are also looking for the advent near, to meet at Boston, Mass. [Wednesday], Oct. 14, 1840, at 10 o'clock A. M., to continue two days, or as long as may then be found best. "The object of the conference will not be to form a new organization in the faith of Christ, nor to assail others of our brethren who differ from us in regard to the period and manner of the advent; but to discuss the whole subject faithfully and fairly. in the exercise of that spirit of Christ in which it will be safe immediately to meet Him at the judgment seat.

"By so doing we may accomplish much in the rapid, general, and powerful spread of the everlasting gospel of the kingdom' at hand, that the way of the Lord may be speedily prepared, whatever may be the precise period of His coming."-" History of the Second Advent Message and Mission, Doctrine and People," by Isaac C. Wellcome, p. 177.

Henry Dana Ward, of New York City, was chosen chairman pro tempore, and delivered a brief address, in which he called attention to the fundamental character of the advent hope as an element in apostolic teaching and preaching. After a committee on nominations had been appointed, Josiah Litch occupied the remainder of the forenoon with an address on "Christ's Coming in Glory." The early part of the afternoon was given to a prayer and social service. The committee on nominations then made its report. Henry Dana Ward was elected chairman; Henry Jones, secretary; and J. V. Himes, Josiah Litch, and Joseph Bates were members of the committee on arrangements.

In the evening, Henry Jones presented extracts from various "Confessions of Faith," sustaining the essential views of the advent believers. The exercises of the day closed with the reading of a circular address to the churches, setting forth the position and work of the advent believers. The address is directed to "all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours." It first passes in review the New Testament teaching concerning the importance of a watchful, waiting attitude on the part of the Christian church. It goes on to set forth quite explicitly the purpose of the conference and the activities of the believers generally:

"Our object in assembling at this time, our object in addressing you, and our object in other efforts, separate and combined, on the subject of 'the kingdom of heaven at hand,' is to revive and restore this ancient faith, to renew the ancient landmarks, to stand in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way' in which our fathers walked and the martyrs 'found rest for their souls.'

"As believers in this glorious and yet 'terrible day of the Lord''at hand,' it does not become us to judge, censure, or condemn others who see not as we do in regard to this subject, nor to show our zeal for the faith by personally denouncing scoffers and gainsayers. . . . We seek not the honor of this world, nor do we fear its frown; but in the meek and quiet spirit of the gospel, we would walk in all the ordinances of our respective churches blameless, and exhibit in the purity of our lives the holiness and power of the doctrine we profess, in the hope of the appearing of our Lord in His heavenly kingdom.

"Though in some of the less important views of this momentous subject we are not ourselves agreed, particularly in regard to fixing the year of Christ's second advent, yet we are unanimously agreed and established in this all-absorbing point, that the coming of the Lord to judge the world is now specially nigh at hand.' . . .

"We are al-tipini agreed that at the very commencement of the millennium the Lord will com. Vrs then remaining alive and ungodly will be slain by the sword

that the sinn

of the Lo

in the glory of His Father, and all the saints with Him, and

or 'taken' and 'cast alive, with the beast and the false prophet, into a lake of fire burning with brimstone,' instead of being all converted to the obedience of the gospel.

"Again, we are agreed and harmonize with the published creed of the Episcopal, Dutch Reformed, Presbyterian, and Methodist Churches, together with the Cambridge Platform of the Congregational Church, and the Lutheran and Roman Catholic Churches, in maintaining that Christ's second and only coming now will be to judge the world at the last day.'"- Id., pp. 179, 180. On Thursday morning there was first a devotional service, then the conference continued:

"The conference heard from different members very interesting reports of the introduction and progress of the doctrine of the kingdom of heaven at hand in the various places of their abode. . . . After which the communion of the Lord's supper was administered by Messrs. Russell and Litch to some two hundred or more communicants of different evangelical denominations, many of whom were from remote distances."

Thursday evening J. V. Himes read a discourse on "The Judgment," sent by William Miller, who was detained at home. by illness. The conference was brought to a close with a resolution heartily approving the establishment of The Signs of the Times, and calling upon Adventist believers everywhere to rally to its support.

A full report of the conference and of the lectures was issued in pamphlet form and circulated widely. Besides giving publicity to the principles and work of the Adventists, it helped to establish the sense of unity of effort, and to secure a larger degree of co-operation in spreading the message.

As soon as his health permitted, Mr. Miller was again in the field. After filling several engagements in the State of New York, he returned to Boston to give his fourth course of lectures in that city. When these meetings, held in the Chardon Street chapel, were well under way, an invitation was accepted to conduct a course also at the Baptist church in South Boston. This work completed, Mr. Miller next delivered lectures at various points in Massachusetts, and at Providence, R. I., in the latter place the use of the town hall being granted for the purpose by the city council.

During the summer of 1841, several talented men were sounding the message, each in his own sphere: Josiah Litch at the annual conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Henry Dana Ward and Henry Jones in New York City, where the latter was conducting a periodical known as The Second Advent Wit

1 Rev. 19: 11-20.

ness. Charles Fitch, who had severed his conne 1, n with the movement, rejoined the advent body about this tim and labored earnestly and efficiently. David Millard, Joseph Bates, P. R. Russell, and Calvin French were other leading workers.

Several conferences like the Boston meeting of 1840 were held during the year, the first of these being in Lowell, Mass., June 15-17. D. E. Robinson presided, Joseph Bates was one of the vice-presidents, and Joshua V. Himes and Henry Jones were secretaries. At this meeting it was voted to raise $1,000 for the work, and $649.04 in cash was collected. This action was taken:

“Resolved, That we solicit the co-operation of all who heartily love the appearing of Christ in the clouds of heaven, as being near at hand, whatever may be their views of the prophetic numbers, on which some of us found our argument that the advent will take place about the year A. D. 1843.

"Resolved, That we will, as ministers and individuals, by the help of God, exert what influence we can, by the consecration of our all to the work of spreading far and wide the great Scriptural doctrine of Christ's coming and kingdom now in all respects especially nigh at hand."-" History of the Second Advent Message and Mission, Doctrine and People," by Isaac C. Wellcome, p. 212.

The second conference of the year was held Oct. 12-14, 1841, in Portland, Me., and was a source of great encouragement to the large number of Adventists in attendance. It had a considerable effect also upon the people of Portland, many of whom were converted by the stirring sermons and Bible studies, and joined the number of those who were looking for the near advent of the Saviour.

The third conference was convened in Broadway Tabernacle, New York City, Oct. 25, 1841, the Rev. John Lindsey, of the Methodist Episcopal Church, presiding. The chairman announced as the topic for consideration, "The Kingdom of Heaven, as Preached in the Gospel. Is a Future Dispensation Near at Hand?" Addresses were given by Josiah Litch, Henry Dana Ward, Joshua V. Himes, and others. The following notice appeared in the New York Tribune of Wednesday, October 27:

"The Millennium.- A convention of Christians who feel a special interest in the subject of the second coming of Christ assembled on Monday in this city, and has since held three sessions daily in the Tabernacle. They are fairly attended. There is little or no discussion, but the members give their views on the subject in succession, sometimes from treatises prepared beforehand, sometimes direct from the heart. The members appear thoughtful, earnest men. and generally impressed with the conviction that some special manifestation of divine power is near at hand. The sessions will be continued, and we presume the attendance increased, today."

Another newspaper report, after commenting on the general harmony that prevailed in the meeting, mentions some diver

gence of litt

pinion in reference to "fixing a time" for the advent. dve This point may be worthy of notice. People of today, looking Me back upon the advent movement of the thirties and forties, are apt to emphasize the time element at the expense of other elements equally important, and perhaps even more characteristic. It is an interesting and significant fact that prominent supporters of Mr. Miller were opposed to the setting of any definite time. Among these were Henry Dana Ward and Henry Jones, of New York City, both of whom took part in the first advent conference in Boston. They subscribed to the general teaching of the Adventists, and were themselves a part of the movement, but they could not agree to fix a date for the advent. Their attitude on

this point was made clear at the first conference.

Mr. Ward wrote an article, which was published in the Signs of the Times of December, 1841, setting forth his view concerning time-setting, and giving reasons. He based his position

chiefly on such texts as these:

"Of that day and hour knoweth no man."

"Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is." "It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in His own power."

"The Father [urged Mr. Ward] did not intend we should know them, and for this cause He hath put' them in His own power,' that men may be constantly on the watch, and never at liberty to say, 'The Lord will not come this day, this year, these thousand years, but He will come at such a time.'"

The question may arise, "How could a man with such views associate himself with Mr. Miller?" A further quotation from the same article will help to clear up this difficulty. The writer goes on to point out the fact that the most active opponents of Mr. Miller were advocates of a temporary millennium to precede the coming of Christ. He says:

"We observe that the people, above all others, vexed at certain men for fixing dates to future events, are the same who have favorite dates of their own to watch for, and therefore their true vexation arises, not so much against the foretelling of times, which they themselves practise, as against the particular time foretold. which conflicts with some favorite view of their own. . . .

"Those who limit the times to two years, are no more transgressors for this, than those who extend them to a thousand or more. They are alike dealers in prophetic times, but the larger class on much the larger scale. Men think it good to calculate that this world will continue yet a thousand years at least, but to calculate that it will continue only two years, is the height of presumption, and it ever excites the ridicule and contempt of the larger prophets. We have nothing to do with either of these but to moderate the assurances with which one calculates this, and another that fixed time;