HEZEKIAH was a most virtuous and pious king of Judah, of whom this testi­mony is given by inspiration, that he sought the Lord with all his heart. In him we see a striking in­stance of what the energy of a single character, aided and supported by a kind Providence, could do, towards re­trieving the depressed and deranged state of a kingdom or nation. He came to the throne at a time when both the religious and political state of his kingdom were in the greatest disorder, and deepest depression; occasioned by the wicked and impolitic conduct of his predecessor.

Ahaz, his father, was a monster of folly and impiety, and his affairs were proportionably unprosperous. The Jewish religion was so interwoven with their civil con­stitution, that any attempt to change it, either by prince or people, was treason against the commonwealth, as [Page 4] well as impiety towards God. Ahaz attempted to abol­ish the established worship, and actually introduced and patronized the idolatrous rites of the heathen nations by whom Judah was surrounded. Hereby he lost the hearts of his best subjects, and forfeited the protection of heaven. The Syrians of Damascus smote him, and carried many of his people captive; as did likewise the king of Israel, who slew them in a rage that reached up to heaven, even one hundred and twenty thousand in one day. And al­though he lavished both his own treasures, the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the princes, upon Tilgath-pilneser, king of Assyria, (then the most powerful monarch in the world,) he only distressed him, but helped him not. In the time of his afflictions his im­piety increased; he trespassed the more against the Lord. This is recorded by inspiration with a note of infamy. "This is that king Ahaz." And, proportionably, as he became impious and unprosperous, he became con­temptible in the eyes of his subjects.

When the kingdom was in this state of religious and political disorder and debility, Hezekiah, a most worthy son of a wretched father, mounted the throne. He im­mediately set himself, in earnest, to remedy the evils oc­casioned by the weakness and wickedness of his prede­cessor. One of the first works of his reign was to open, purify, and repair the house of God, which had been de­faced, deserted, and shut up, during the impious reign of Ahaz; as well as to destroy idolatry, and restore the true worship of God in every part of his dominions. But, though his heart was much engaged in the reformation of religion, he was by no means inattentive either to the political interests of his kingdom, or to the means of in­creasing and drawing forth the internal resources thereof, for the purposes of defence. He repaired the fenced cities of Judah, and put arms and garrisons in them; and after he had, in a good measure, strengthened his Kingdom, he threw off the inglorious Assyrian yoke, to [Page 5] which Ahaz his father had submitted: And, although he was unsuccessful in some encounters with the Assyri­ans, when they first invaded the land, and several of the fenced cities of Judah fell into the enemy's hands, yet, in the issue, (through a very signal interposition of provi­dence in his favour,) he was completely victorious. And before his death, the kingdom of Judah was ad­vanced to a very high pitch of prosperity. His many private virtues, as well as his righteous and successful administration of the affairs of the kingdom, endeared him very much to the nation in his life, and at his death his people were disposed to confer every honor upon his memory, to which a man, who had deserved eminently well of his country, could be entitled. Such was the man to whom all Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusa­lem, did honour at his death; having, doubtless, previ­ously honoured him in his life.

I shall not, in this discourse, confine myself to the usual formality of a sermon. This passage of sacred history, however, furnishes us with an observation, which I shall keep in view in what follows: viz.

That when men of extraordinary gifts, talents, and usefulness, particularly, rulers who have been in the most eminent stations in a nation, have filled them with dig­nity, and have been eminent blessings to their country, come to die, the bestowing extraordinary honours upon, as well as making more than usual lamentation for them, is a custom which hath, more or less, obtained among all nations; and, when kept within due bounds, is op­posed by no principle either of reason or revelation.

However the custom may be liable to abuses, and, doubtless, has in many instances been abused, yet, when duly regulated, it is not only lawful, but laudable, and the more extensive a person's sphere of usefulness has been, the more widely extended will be the honours done him at his death.

[Page 6] Instead of, at this time, attempting to range the wide field of profane history for illustration, I shall barely se­lect two or three instances from the pages of inspiration.

When the patriarch Jacob died in Egypt, and was carried, for interment, into the land of Canaan, great lamentation was made for him, and he was honoured with a sumptuous and expensive funeral. When Moses, who had delivered the children of Israel out of Egypt, and led them, forty years, through the wilderness to­wards Canaan, died on the mount, all Israel mourned for him thirty days. When Samuel the prophet died, who had been such a singular blessing in his day, all Is­rael lamented him, and buried him. When Asa, a vir­tuous king of Judah, died, they laid him in a bed which was filled with sweet odours, and divers kinds of spices, prepared by the apothecaries art; and they made a very great burning for him. In like manner good Hezekiah was honoured. And when godly Josiah was untimeously slain at Megiddo, ‘all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah. And all the singing men, and singing women, spake of Josiah in their lamentations unto this day, and they made them an ordinance in Israel; and behold they are written in the book of the lamenta­tions.’ Many of those inimitably beautiful, and pathetic strains of sorrow, recorded in the book of the lamenta­tions, have, without doubt, a reference to the death of that pious and excellent prince.

Now there is no mark of disapprobation put upon the extraordinary respect shewn, either to Hezekiah, or others at their death. But, on the other hand, the want of a decent, or even honourable attention at death, is threatened as a calamity, and a curse, particularly upon Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah.— ^* ‘Therefore, thus saith the Lord concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, they shall not lament for him saying, Ah my brother, [Page 7] or, Ah my sister. They shall not lament for him say­ing, Ah Lord, or, Ah his glory. He shall be buried with the burial of an ass, drawn, and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem.’

In our present situation, the question will now be, If we suppose it necessary, or even allowable for all the in­habitants of a country, to do honour to the memory of a great and signal benefactor at his death, how is it to be done?

I shall, for a very few moments, detain you on this question, and then proceed to such observations as are more immediately suggested by the occasion upon which, not only this large assembly, but many others through­out the United States, are collected together.

And reason, as well as custom and experience teaches us, that peculiarly eminent and useful men, are to be honoured at their death, by a funeral more sumptuous, and even more expensive than usual. Though this can be no advantage to the dead, it is but a proper testimo­ny of the respect which the living bear to their memory. Thus Joseph spared no expense at his father's funeral, but engaged physicians to embalm the aged patriarch.

It is reasonable also to honour great and eminent men, by making a more than ordinary public lamentation for them. As the loss which a country sustains, when such eminent characters are taken away, is truly great, and must be extensively felt, it is but reasonable that a sen­sibility of it should be proportionably expressed.

We are moreover to honour great and useful men at their death, by taking suitable notice of the great things they have done, and by giving even such a particular detail of their eminent services, as would be inconveni­ent during their lives. When Tabitha, otherwise called Dorcas, died, all the widows, and such as had been re­lieved by her beneficence, stood by her weeping, and shewing the coats and garments Dorcas made while she was with them. So, when any very dear friend is ab­sent, [Page 8] more especially, if he is gone to that bourne from whence no traveller returns, it is natural for surviv [...] to dwell with pleasure, even upon every minute circum­stance which has a tendency to endear his memory. With much greater reason ought a grateful people to re­count the signal services done by one who has been an eminent benefactor, and even a father to his country; and hath led them by the hand through the storms of a revolution, to the haven of peace and political security; when he himself is now no more. Truth is to be our guide, and we are not to ascribe to men, qualifications they did not posses, but just commendations are not to be withheld, whether it be in set orations, or at other times when their names are mentioned.

Nor, in honouring signally great and useful men at their deaths, is that Providence which hath raised them up, and made them what they were, to be overlooked. Man can never be more honoured, than when he is con­sidered as a distinguished instrument for carrying on some important purpose of Providence, for the welfare and happiness of mankind. That God does raise up, and qualify men for eminent stations, is a point to which revelation gives testimony. ^* ‘By me kings reign, and princes decree judgment. By me princes rule, and nobles; even all the judges of the earth. ^†Pro­motion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, but God is the judge himself, he raiseth up one, and putteth down another.’ Providence furnisheth such instruments with qualifications, suited to the sta­tions in which they are placed. David ascribes his skill in war to this source. ‘Thou art he who teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight. A bow of steel is broken by mine arms.’ He furnisheth judges for the bench, generals for the field, and princes to sway the sceptre. He is a spirit of judgment to those [Page 9] who sit in judgment, and strength to those who turn the battle to the gates. Thus Moses was raised up for a deliverer, to rescue the children of Israel out of their Egyptian bondage, as well as for a lawgiver, and leader to guide them through the wilderness; Joshua was rais­ed up as a general, to conduct them into the promised land; and the judges and prophets were raised up and qualified for the particular services assigned them. Da­vid was also, by a wonderful train of providences, taken from the sheepfold and raised up, step by step, until he became the captain of the Lord's people. I shall only select one instance more from the sacred records; and that not of one who was a professor of the true religion. I mean Cyrus, king of Persia, who, besides being other­wise concerned in bringing about the general plan of Providence, was an instrument in God's hand, in Israel's return out of the Babylonish captivity. Of him, hon­ourable mention is made by the prophet long before he was born. ^* ‘That saith of Cyrus he is my shepherd, and shall do all my pleasure, saying to Jerusalem thou shalt be built, and to the temple, thy foundation shall be laid. ^†Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him. ^‡I have even called thee by thy name, and sirnamed thee, tho thou hast not known me.’ The same Providence is ever watchful still, of which instances might easily be multiplied; taken both from more ancient and more modern times. But passing others: Was not the interposition of Prov­idence exceedingly visible, in raising up our lately be­loved, but now sincerely regretted, and lamented WASHINGTON, and in qualifying him, in a re­markable manner, for his work, as well as in assisting, and prospering him in it, so as to cause it to be event­ually [Page 10] crowned with success? No greater respect there­fore, can be paid to his memory, no greater honour can be done him at his death, than by ascribing the glory of all he was and did, to that Providence by which he was raised up.

Great and wise Statesmen and Patriots are to be hon­oured at their death, by continuing to imitate their ex­ample, and to copy after, and practice the wise maxims of their administration. There is no part of the honour which is justly due to deceased worthies, who have de­served well of their country, that is so seldom rendered, and the performance of which is attended with so much difficulty as this. We may shed many tears, we may form funeral processions, we may bury their remains with Masonic, with Military, with Christian, and even with princely honours, or with every honour short of that which is divine; we may compose funeral dirges, and extoll their praises to the clouds in set orations; we may ascribe to them every human, heroic, patriotic, and princely virtue, and even such virtues as are above the reach of humanity. But if, at the same time, their wise political maxims are disregarded, and our councils yielded up to the influence of party spirit, domestic fac­tion, or foreign intrigue, we shall contradict our pro­fessions, and essentially fail of doing them honour at their deaths: In such a conduct we will resemble the Scribes and Pharisees, whom our Lord stigmatizes as hypocrites, because, while they professed the greatest respect for the dead prophets, by building and garnishing their sepul­chres, they persecuted the living ones. This was a way, in which the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem, soon betrayed the want of a due regard to the memory of the excellent Hezekiah. The wise, pious, and patriotic maxims of his excellent reign, were all quick­ly set aside by an impious and profligate Manasseh; and the wise counsellors, who had stood before the father, were quickly discarded by the son.

[Page 11] But it is time to proceed to the application of th [...]se observations, to the memory of that illustrious person­age, that truly great man, who has lately fallen in our Israel, whose death has made an impression heretofore unknown, upon the minds of citizens of all ranks and characters in America. Probably, in some instances, the public demonstrations of sorrow may have been at­tended with useless parade, and some of little discern­ment, may have been more taken up with the shew, than affected with the loss our country has sustained, in being deprived of one of its most illustrious ornaments: Yet our loss is truly great, and to make a suitable im­provement of it, is the only way to prevent its being long felt.

Were I fond of panegyric, I probably have no great talents for the subject. And if I have little ability, I have as little inclination to give flattering titles unto men. I have frequently turned from funeral eulogies and panegyrics, with disgust; as being too often, like dedications, composed of a particular set of praises, which are indiscriminately lavished upon all characters: and encomiums upon persons of substantial worth are, many times, carried too high. But on the present oc­casion, it will naturally be expected that something be said, and in whatever point of view we contemplate the personage before us, the subject is copious. I shall not attempt to draw the character of our beloved WASH­INGTON at large. Had I sufficient materials for the task, I must fatigue both myself and the audience in the delivery, as it must comprise in it a detail of all his great actions, and must even descend into many of the minute circumstances of his life. Let this, therefore, be the business of the professed Biographer. What I shall say upon the present occasion, shall probably, be no more, nor even so much as has been already, a thousand times, repeated.

[Page 12] Here, let it be observed, that, as a man and a citi­zen, in the more private walks of life, his character has universally been represented as amiable, by those who were favoured with a personal knowledge of him. But it was in his public character that we, who are so re­mote from the sphere of his acquaintance, knew him; as it was this, that formed the endearing connection be­tween him and his countrymen, and rendered him so universally known, beloved and esteemed by his fellow citizens of all ranks, and now renders his death so sin­cerely regretted and lamented; a very few strictures hereupon is all that I shall attempt.

And, comparing what he was and did, with the ob­servations made in the preceding part of our discourse, is it not evident that a distinguishing Providence raised him up, qualified him, and pointed him out in a pecu­liar manner, as an instrument of signal good, as a very singular blessing to his country, and to mankind. His great and capacious mind possessed talents which, in ear­ly life, began to unfold themselves to public observation. And they were so far from being of that shewy unsub­stantial kind, which promise much, but commonly dis­appoint the expectation, that they appear to be always equal to the occasion which called for their exertion. A quickness of apprehension, a penetrating judgment, an aptness to foresee, and a prudence to ward off dan­ger and difficulty, a firmness and decision of character, equal to the execution of resolutions, judiciously and deliberately taken, and a heart unappalled by opposing dangers and difficulties; connected with an unshaken regard to the interests of his country, marked his char­acter in the various steps both of his civil and military career; and pointed him out as one of the few men, who are equally great in the cabinet and the field.

The future hero of America was early seen by some discerning minds, in the gallant youth, who in such a masterly manner, with so much judgment, courage, [Page 13] and conduct, led the shattered remains of Braddock's broken and defeated army, from the field of battle. So noticable was his conduct in this and some other in­stances, in early life, that the late President Davies, a character well known to the world by his piety, and valuable writings, after noticing in a sermon, the man­ner in which eminent men are trained up by Providence, for stations of signal usefulness in the defence of their country, adds, by way of a note— ^* ‘As a remarkable instance of this, I may point out to the public that he­roic youth Col. WASHINGTON, whom I cannot but hope, Providence has hitherto preserved in so signal a manner, for some important service to his country.’

Had the good man lived to have seen his heroic youth, placed at the head of the armies of his country, in their virtuous struggle for independence, had he seen him leading them to victory, and in the issue seen that prophecy literally fulfilled where it is said, ‘A nation shall be born in a day;’ had he seen the conspicuous part he took, in procuring our independence, and beheld the fabric of our confederated republic, reared up to such a good degree of maturity, beneath his fostering hand, he would have seen his prediction completely verified.

In these youthful displays of military courage and skill, our WASHINGTON resembled the great Gus­tavus Adolphus of Sweden; an illustrious patriot and warrior of the last century, who, at the premature age of little more than eighteen, headed an army, and con-contended with some of the most experienced generals in Europe, with all the prudence, courage and persever­ance, of the most veteran commander.

But we are to view our WASHINGTON in a still more extensive sphere of activity and usefulness; when the unanimous voice of his country placed him at the head of her armies, while she was engaged in that [Page 14] arduous struggle, which terminated in America's taking a rank among the nations of the world.

To follow him through the various campaigns in which he was engaged, to notice the numerous, and complicated difficulties with which he had to encounter, in forming an undisciplined multitude into an army of regular soldiers, in struggling with a superior force, composed of troops in the highest stage of discipline, and headed by commanders of the greatest military skill and experience, while his own, comparatively, feeble band, was frequently in want of military stores, and disheartened for the lack of pay and clothing, and, many times, kept together by little else than the respect they had for their general; I say to enter into a particu­lar detail of these things, and to note the prudence, and persevering firmness, with which he surmounted the greatest difficulties, is the business of the historian; and an attempt to comprise it in the bounds of a single dis­course, would be both vain and fruitless. But, so brightly did our WASHINGTON'S character shine, in the midst of these difficulties and dangers, as to ex­tort this comprehensive commendation, from one of the greatest generals and statesmen this century has produc­ed, and one who from his well known despotic princi­ples, could not be supposed to be prejudiced in favour of the cause in which he was engaged: I mean the il­lustrious Frederick of Prussia. WASHINGTON, says he, is a brave general, his hand is an army, and his head a council of state.

One instance, in particular, in which, during his military career, this single man was, under Providence the instrument of saving his country, must not be pass­ed in silence. I mean his manoeuvre on the memora­ble 26th of December 1776. Many of my hearers re­member this, as a period in which the affairs of our country were in the lowest state of depression. Our armies dispersed, and almost annihilated, and the shatter­ed [Page 15] remains flying in every direction; every arm was unnerved, and every heart appalled with fear. Then, with a presence of mind which never forsook him in times of the greatest danger, he rallied a few veterans; and, in a stormy and tempestuous night, crossed the Delaware, beat up the enemies quarters at Trenton, and by afterwards following the blow at Princeton, a new turn was given to our affairs, and a new spirit was infused into his drooping, and desponding countrymen. These events compared with others which took place during the war, may seem unimportant, yet, connected as they are with their consequences, they gave a new turn to our affairs, and, in the issue, were the means of saving our country.

But we are to contemplate his character in another point of view. We have seen him at the head of our armies, we are also to view him as the first magistrate of a free people. When the old confederation, framed in the time of war, was found by experience to be a bond too feeble to collect the strength of the several independ­ent states, for national purposes, now no longer held together by a source of common danger, and a new con­stitution, better calculated to concentrate the strength of the whole, was formed under his auspices; he was call­ed by the unanimous voice of his country, to fill the chair of first magistrate. Here, contrary to his own feelings and wishes, he again obeyed his country's call, and launched forth anew into public life. It is not my business to attempt a detail of the ability and fidelity with which he filled that important post. The memory of his services will, I trust, be long fresh upon the minds of his grateful countrymen. And that state of national re­spectability to which, as a people, we are risen, under that constitution, cannot fail to endear the memory of an able, faithful, and successful pilot to the hearts of his countrymen. I have only to notice that in this impor­tant [Page 16] office he was, once more, the happy instrument of saving his country.

When the flames of revolution began to spread in France, and Americans, ignorant of the principles and motives of French leaders, and charmed with the sound of liberty, were, almost to a man, wishing them to be free from the galling yoke of arbitrary power, and the intrigues of Genet operated like an electric fluid, upon all corners of the land, and many who seemed to be pillars were shaken, WASHINGTON'S prudent fore­sight determined upon a neutral station, and his firmness was a principal mean of preventing our making a com­mon cause with France, and launching forth into all the wild career of disorganizing madness, and of preserving our neutrality, in spite of all open attempts, and secret intrigues to violate it. Had he, in his official capacity, thrown his influence into the opposite scale, or, had he been a man of less firmness, and less weight of character, less able to check the growth of foreign influence, or the budding of domestic faction, we would, most proba­bly, have been involved in the horrible vortex of Euro­pean politics, and, before this day, been in the degraded, impoverished, and wretched situation of Holland, Swit­zerland, or Geneva. But, by a firmness, joined with a spirit of discernment to descry danger, and a prudent caution in avoiding it, our skillful pilot, under Divine Providence, has steered the political bark safe, amidst the rocks, shoals, and quicksands that assailed it.

One or two traits in his character, which appeared conspicuous throughout the whole of his career, civil and military, deserve still farther notice: And, among these a disinterested regard to the welfare of his country, a disposition to sacrifice his own ease and interest for the public welfare, claims the first place. He fought our battles unpaid, and at the close of the war he retired, like another Cincinnatus, unpensioned. And, at a time when he might have easily abandoned a post full of [Page 17] danger, in a manner greatly to his own emolument, and have risen to eminence upon the spoils of his country, he, like Moses, chose rather to suffer affliction with his own people, than to secure to himself all the honours and emoluments, in the gift of the British King. Such was the man of whom it was, long since, said, that neither British arms could subdue him, British artifice inveigle him, nor British Gold corrupt him.

A singular manifestation of his disregard to his own emolument, and inviolable attachment to the interests of his country appeared at the close of the war in 1783; a time when the spoils of his country lay at his feet. It is true, the United States never made him a formal tender of their liberties, nor an offer to invest him with sovereign power. But, from the peculiar circumstan­ces which attended the close of the war; the army dis­contented for want of pay, and, many of them, ripe for any enterprize, and, at the same time, having an almost unbounded attachment to, and placing an unlim­ited confidence in their general; had our WASHING­TON been fired with the ambition of a Caesar or a Crom­wel, with the encouragement set before him, which, it is said amounted to an indirect invitation to make the attempt, he might easily have assumed the title of Pro­tector, Dictator, or whatever else he chose, with all the insignia of sovereign authority.

It has been frequently observed that there is nothing of which mankind are so tenacious, as power; nothing which they will make so great sacrifices to acquire, and nothing which they will relinquish with so great reluc­tance. And, to confirm the remark, almost innumera­ble are the instances in which successful commanders have made use of their success, and the influence they had obtained over the minds of their fellow soldiers, to climb to sovereign authority. But though our WASHING­TON might have acted without control, he chose rather to live in the hearts of his fellow citizens, and to [Page 18] resign up his gallant army of hardy veterans, to the justice, and generosity of his country, which has afford­ed them, at least a very tardy recompence for all their toils and sufferings, than to keep a commission with which he had been entrusted, after the object for which he received it, had been obtained.

It is true, his conduct in this instance was not alto­gether singular. A few are recorded in history who, with a peculiar greatness of mind, sacrificed the daz­zling prospect of advantages, to their country's good. With a noble disinterestedness did the gallant and suc­cessful Gideon reject the offer of sovereignty in Israel, and was afterwards, in his posterity, basely requited by his ungrateful countrymen. ^* ‘Then the men of Is­rael said unto Gideon, rule thou over us, both thou and thy son, and thy sons son also, for thou hast de­livered us out of the hand of Midian. And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you, the Lord shall rule over you.’ And we have an Andrew Dorra in more modern times, one of the greatest sea Captains of the sixteenth centu­ry, who with a similar greatness of soul, rejected the sovereignty of his native country Genoa, after deliver­ing it by his arms from the usurped dominion of France: and who grew old as a private citizen, beloved and respected by his countrymen, and honoured with the title of father of his country, though he would not be its master. Happy for America that our WASHING­TON resembled these, and some other worthies of the same stamp, and not the more numerous class, who are continually grasping after power, and never part with it but with reluctance.

I have only to add that the same disinterested regard to the welfare of his country, marked his acceptance of the presidency, which, considering his love of retirement, and his abundant employment in it, was a manifest sacri­fice [Page 19] of inclination, to duty. And, under a still addition­al load of declining years, his accepting, at his country's call, a station subordinate to one he had formerly held, furnished a fresh evidence of his prefering the public wel­fare to his own ease or advantage. And although in his late commission of general, there was no particular oc­casion for active services in the field, yet the readiness with which he obeyed his country's call, and embarked in her cause, undertaking to face danger at a time when nature needs repose, afforded a fresh evidence of his dis­interested attachment. And as he lived, so he died in the service of his country.

Another trait in the character of our WASHING­TON, and one which ought to endear his memory to his country, was his love of peace, and his unremitting endeavours, during his administration, to procure, and preserve it. This is a trait of character which is far from being as common as it ought, among great mili­tary personages. But a WASHINGTON never drew his sword only in the defence of his country, and its dearest rights. And whenever the object for which he took up arms was obtained, with what heartfelt satisfac­tion did he sheathe it, and return to the peaceful duties of a private citizen? The Alexanders, the Caesars, and other heroes of antiquity, with their successors and imi­tators in more modern times, appeared to delight in blood and carnage. Many heroes, generals and con­querors, have been reputed great, in proportion as they turned the world into a desart, and have brought ruin, misery and slavery upon mankind. Their motives were lawless ambition, and an undue lust after dominion, to which they could lay no other claim but force. A hero or a conqueror has, for this reason, been justly accounted a term synonymous with a scourge, and a curse to man­kind. But our WASHINGTON prized the peace and happiness of his country. The favourite maxim of his administration was, to seek peace and pursue it, [Page 20] though he would not shrink from a necessary war. This trait in his character disposed him so assiduously to main­tain our neutrality during the present European contests, which have deluged the eastern world in blood. His character, therefore, has not improperly been summed up in this comprehensive manner: First in war; first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen.

Another distinguished trait in his character, if it may not be rather denominated a singular providence, where­by he was put in a capacity for more extensive useful­ness, was the surprising union of all hearts and voices in his favour. This was partly owing to his very singular merits and talents, and partly to a kind Providence in his own and country's behalf. When seeking for a chief commander to head our armies, every voice point­ed to him as the man, and when a President of the United States was sought for, no other object was thought of▪ Perhaps we may ransack the pages of history in vain, to find another, who, for so long a time, and in such a great variety of trying circumstances, had such an entire union of all hearts in his favour, and maintained his popularity unimpaired, and almost unenvied. In all the trying scenes which he went through, during eight years war, his character was secure, even against calumny it­self. And in the eight years in which he filled the presi­dential chair, if we except the feeble attempts of a fac­tion, the dupes of French intrigue, and whose leaders would sacrifice their country, their religion, and their God, at the shrine of French liberty, another name for the most detestable slavery, his character has been un­assailed. And these feeble attempts have tended, in the end, to brighten its lustre.

Such are a few traits in the public character of that great man, who has lately fallen in our Israel. It would be more than falls to the portion of humanity, to sup­pose him perfectly free from faults and blemishes. But if there were failings in his public character, they were [Page 21] as few, and his public virtues and great talents, as splend­ed and as numerous, as we can reasonably expect to fall to the lot of a mortal. My design was not to touch upon [...] private character. This, from every source of information of which we are possessed, was amiable. His public official character did not lead him to any particular display of his religious system. Only, in his communications which have come before the world, we find him frequently urging the necessity and importance of religion in general, and expressing a firm and unshaken reliance upon Providence: And, so far as an extensive benevolence to mankind, and integrity and uprightness of conduct, are evidences of the reality of religion, they were copied in his life. And that calm fortitude which was ever conspicuous in his life, did not forsake him in his death.

I shall dismiss this part of my subject with one single observation, viz. That those virtues which adorn the christian character are not of that splendid kind, which catch the attention and command the admiration of the world, but the unostentatious ones, of humility, meek­ness and selfdenial; and in those things which are pecu­liar to christianity, the greatest and the least are all alike. If the greatest hero or statesman is a christian, it is be­cause he has those virtues in common with the meanest, and not because he is possessed of those splendid talents which adorn a public character: Though the most ex­alted character cannot fail to derive an additional lustre from the impression of the peculiar christian virtues, on the heart and life.

Such was the man to whom his country, in so many ways, essays to do honour in his death. But he is gone, and the places which once knew him, shall know him again no more. Though justly entitled to the appella­tion of a God upon earth, in the sense in which that title is applied to magistrates and rulers, he hath died like a common and ordinary man. His dust returns unto dust, [Page 22] and, in a short time, unless it is by the costly monument that covers it, will be undistinguishable from that of a common beggar, as a striking monument of the vanity of every thing that is earthy. We need not invite his grateful countrymen to honour him at his death, either by a sumptuous funeral, by lamenting their loss, or by eulogies upon his character and worth. Of this kind of respect there seems to be no deficiency. The danger is rather, that we shall exceed, by giving him more honour than either is, or can be due to a mere man. But there are two ways of honouring him in his death, in which we cannot exceed, i. e. By continuing to depend upon, and adore that Divine Providence which raised him up, and made him what h [...] was: And by following his ex­ample as a statesman, or by practicing the wise maxims of his administration.

As to his being raised up by Providence, and fitted for the work to which he was called by his country; he was as truly so as Moses, Joshua, Gideon, David, Sam­uel and others, though not precisely in the same manner. And we never can pay a greater tribute to his memory, than by ascribing the glory of all he was and did, to the supreme first cause. If we have seen him the enlighten­ed statesman, the great and successful commander, or the patriotic, virtuous citizen, we have seen him just that in himself, and to his country, which the all-wise dis­poser of events was pleased to make him, and to his name be the glory. And the same Divine Providence can raise up other instruments, equally qualified, when­ever they are needed.

As to imitating his example, or copying after the wise maxims of his administration, to mention no more, his farewell address upon his declining a reelection to the presidency, is a political legacy of inestimable value, the wise maxims of which ought never to be out of view; particularly that part of it, which relates to foreign in­fluence, and foreign connections.

[Page 23] Lycurgus, the famous lawgiver of Sparta, in order to give perpetuity to his laws, withdrew from his country, professedly only for a time, [...]nd exacted an oath of his fellow citizens, that they would make no alteration in his laws till his return. But, instead of returning, he went into voluntary exile, and, at his death, ordered his remains to be thrown into the sea, lest they should be car­ried back to Sparta, and the citizens should think them­selves thereby absolved from the obligation of their oath.

If a method equally efficacious could be adopted, to render the wise maxims of our WASHINGTON per­petual, particularly so far as they relate to foreign influ­ence, and foreign connections, the bane of all free states, it would be happy for our country. Disconnected as she is, by nature, situation and interest, from the other quarters of the globe, America needs a political con­nection with no nation under heaven, nor can such a connection ever be any thing else than a public curse. And as for mercantile connections, they ought to be ex­tended indiscriminately to all nations, so far as they are supported by mutual advantage, the only bond of con­nection between nations, and no farther: Whenever therefore, the time shall come in which foreign influence shall guide our councils, it matters not whether it is French or British, Austrian or Russian, Dutch or Spanish; and we shall enter, with spirit, into all the intrigues, cabals, and quarrels of European nations: If ever the time comes when, forgetting the dignity of our own national character, we shall be divided into French and British factions, we may bid adieu to our peace, prosperity, and even independence as a nation.

A melancholy proof of the deleterious effect of foreign influence, to the peace, happiness, and independence of a nation, may be seen in illfated Poland. Poland, which, if inhabited by an enlightened, free, and independent peo­ple, is calculated by nature and situation, to be one of the fairest portions of Europe. But Poland was a prey to [Page 24] foreign influence. She had her Russian, Prussian, Aus­trian and French factions: She had also her religious factions; armed against each other with all the animosity of party zeal. And what was the consequence? She was first desolated by a civil war, then dismembered of some of her fairest provinces, and, by the late partition, she ceases to be an independent nation. If ever Ameri­ca becomes a prey to foreign influence, and is doomed to such a curse, a partition of her fair inheritance may, one day, compromise a quarrel between Britain, France, or some other European powers. Let us therefore hon­our our deceased WASHINGTON, who, though dead yet speaketh, in his excellent parental advices; and con­sult our own happiness and national prosperity, by bear­ing in mind, and steadily practising these excellent max­ims of his administration.

While we express our sensibility for the loss of a WASHINGTON, we ought not to forget to pay a just tribute of respect to other illustrious characters, who have deserved well of their country, and who have lately finished their earthly course; and whose memories ought to live in the breasts of their fellow citizens. The year 1799 has been uncommonly mortal among illustrious characters. To mention a few: This commonwealth has lost an enlightened statesman, and illustrious patriot; a man who was justly considered an ornament to his country, in our late excellent Governor SUMNER: Penn­sylvania has lost her MIFFLIN, the late governor of the state; a man heretofore well esteemed, both as a states­man and military commander: Virginia has lost a states­man, and a patriot of distinguished worth, in her late Governor, PATRICK HENRY: Maryland has, likewise, lost a distinguished character, sometimes governor, of the same name. South-Carolina has lost her Governor RUTLEDGE, a man who has long been considered as one of her most illustrious citizens: And the Supreme Fed­eral Bench has lost two of its ornaments, by the [Page 25] deaths of an IREDELL, and PACA: And to close the scene, the whole continent has suffered a loss still greater in her WASHINGTON.

Such an uncommon mortality among illustrious char­acters, in so short a time, is an event which but rarely happens; and when it falls out, is one which calls for the most serious attention. Frequently such a dispensa­tion has been the forerunner of some signal calamity. Good men are removed out of the reach of evils they can­not avert. ^* ‘The righteous perisheth, (faith the word of inspiration▪) and no man layeth it to heart; and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come.’ There was a most signal calamity threaten­ed upon Judah and Jerusalem, by the Prophets, in these words: ^† ‘For behold the Lord, the Lord of hosts, doth take away from Judah and Jerusalem, the stay and the staff. The mighty man, and the man of war, the judge and the prophet, the prudent and the ancient, the captain of fifty, and the honourable man, and the counsellor; and the cunning artificer, and the eloquent orator. And I will give children to be their princes, and strangers shall rule over them.’ Chil­dren not in age, but in knowledge, and political fore­sight. Two or three instances we may select from scrip­ture, wherein the deaths of eminently great and good men, were followed with signal calamities to the na­tion, viz. The deaths of good Hezekiah, the subject of our text, and of his great grandson, the singularly virtuous and pious Josiah, who was slain in the valley of Megiddo; and the death of Jehoiada the priest, who was such a great benefactor to the nation, and such a faithful counsellor to Joash. At these several periods the nation appears to have been ripe for scourge, and to deserve to be punished with the wickedness of Manasseh, and of Jo­siah's sons, and the folly of Joash, rather than be blessed [Page 26] with the virtue, piety, and wisdom of Hezekiah or Josiah, and the prudent counsels of the aged and wise Jehoiada. God, therefore, gave them princes in his anger, and sub­jected them to a throne of iniquity, which established mischief by a law.

But we would wish to deprecate deserved judgments, and hope for better things in the present instance. Per­haps Providence may have a different purpose in view. Perhaps it may be to teach us the vanity, and even fol­ly of placing too great dependence upon any instrument whatsoever; or of thinking more highly of a fellow worm, of mere dust and ashes, than we ought to think. God's hand is, by no means shortened, that he cannot save. And when determined to save a people, instru­ments can never be wanting for that purpose. He can raise up WASHINGTONS without number, when either the advancement of his own glory, or the happi­ness of a people, whom he delights to save, shall re­quire it. So long as we are a people favoured of heaven, we never shall be wanting in leaders, either to head our troops in the field, if necessary, or to guide the helm, in the most intricate affairs of state. Such instruments, we trust, are not wanting at present. Tho' a WASH­INGTON is gone we have an ADAMS left, and when he shall have served his generation as long as Provi­dence sees meet, he by whom kings reign, and who is a spirit of judgement to those who sit in judgement, can, and probably will raise up, and qualify others in succes­sion, equally great and good, and make them blessings equally eminent in their day and generation, as a Joshua succeeded Moses, and Eleazer succeeded Aaron, and Solomon filled the throne of his father David.

There are, it is true, particular seasons, which some­times occur, in which the death of even one great and eminent man, may justly be considered as a very singu­lar calamity. As, when he is taken away at a time in which the success of a cause, great and important to [Page 27] the happiness of mankind, depends, in a great measure, upon a single life. But, even then, such instruments are sometimes taken away, merely to show us the vani­ty of creature dependence. A striking instance of this kind we see in that singularly great and good man, Gustavus Adolphus, king of Sweden, commonly call­ed Gustavus the second. His amazing abilities, both in the cabinet and the field, pointed him out, as a fit instrument to place at the head of the protestant league, at a very critical time, for opposing the tyrannical, and seemingly irresistible encroachments of the house of Austria, against both the civil and religious liberties of the protestants in Germany. And the event fully testified the choice they had made. He was the princi­pal cement, and even soul of the confederacy. Success attended nearly all his enterprises. But, at a critical moment, when the force of the confederacy seemed to rest on his single life, and, in the midst of a career of victory, he met the fatal bullet on the field of battle, on the plains of Lutgen, at the premature age of thirty eight. But, though a universal consternation spread over one half of Europe, and the other half rejoiced at his death, yet the cause did not die with him. The plan of the confederacy had been so happily laid, and so well cemented, and such able instruments survived him, who had been trained up under so great a master, as complet­ed the work he had so happily begun; God by this dis­pensation, probably giving a practical lesson to the world, not to lay too much dependence upon any one mere man, however eminently great and good.

Our WASHINGTON has, it is true, been taken away in a citical time, a time when his services were highly necessary to his country, to unite her divided councils, in the system of defensive opposition to the unjust encroachments of France; as well as by the weight of his character, to check the progress, and counteract the baneful effects of foreign influence. At a time when [Page 28] his country seemed to need, and his athletic constitution, tho' in an advanced age, to promise a longer continuance of his services. Yet, in many respects, his death cannot be called premature. He was spaired, not only till his military command had been conducted to a successful termination, by an honourable peace, and the establish­ment of our independence, but also, till he had conduct­ed the political bark so far, that we had grown up to a good degree of national respectability, and till he had arrived at a good old age. Instead, therefore, of re­gretting that he was mortal, and that, when he had served his generation, he died like a common ordinary man, let grateful America express their thankfulness to him by whom kings reign, that such a distinguished character was raised up at a critical time, that he was, by Providence, so well qualified for the great undertak­ing in which we have seen him engaged, that he was spaired so long, even till his work was completed, and his endeavours for the good of his country crowned with success, and that the cause of liberty and America still lives. While we cease from man whose breath is in his nostrils, let us trust in the Lord forever; for in the Lord there is everlasting strength. Our WASHINGTON has already done as much for us, as we could rationally expect from a mere man. And, unless we are disposed to attribute part of the glory to a creature, which is just­ly due to the God of armies, why should we desire more?

I cannot dismiss the subject without making one sin­gle remark more, which appears to be suggested by that passage of sacred history, chosen as the foundation of our present discourse. Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and Manasseh his son, reigned in his stead. A most wicked profligate son, of a most pious, virtuous, and illustrious father. Hezekiah appears as a bright shining sun, be­tween two very black clouds, Ahaz and Manasseh. Hereditary succession frequently subjects nations to evils of this kind. It paves the way for sudden transitions [Page 29] from the best to the worst of Princes. Where heredita­ry succession is considered as essential to the established government of a nation, it happens, and that not seldom, that both children and babes in a literal sense, as well as children in knowledge, and experience, tho' full grown men in all the vices which tarnish degenerate human nature, are given to nations to be their princes; and strangers to their country's true interests, as well as to the feelings of humanity, sway the sceptre.

Tho the world has, at different times, been blessed with numbers of excellent princes, who have been nurs­ing fathers to their country, b [...]h knowing and steadily pursuing its true interests; and who, for beneficence, have resembled the Sun when it breaks forth from un­der a cloud▪ and shines in its full strength; yet a com­plete history of all the illustrious madmen, who under the name, and in the character of Princes, have sported with the lives and liberties of mankind, and have cast about firebrands, arrows and death, in short, would chill the blood with horror.

The education which hereditary princes receive, pre­vious to their arriving at supreme power in the state, is, frequently, but little calculated to cultivate those princi­ples, either of the understanding or heart, which are necessary to make wise and virtuous rulers. Born with the expectation of a throne, they consider it as their nat­ural inheritance, which must descend to them of course, whether they possess one single qualification for it or no, they are hereby deprived of one very powerful stimulous to excell. For if we consider human nature to be the same in them, that it is in other men, they are, certain­ly, under very strong temptations to neglect the cultiva­tion of their understandings. Being nursed up in the idea of their natural superiority to other men, it is not to be wondered at, if, many times, they rather consider the nation as their property, than their promotion as given them for the good of the nation. And being fre­quently, from their early infancy, surrounded with crowds [Page 30] of flatterers, who treat even their vices and foibles with every degree of deference and indulgence, in expectation of future favours, can it be thought strange, that, many times, they should rather abuse, than make a right use of that authority with which they are clothed?

In limited Monarchies, even the virtues and talents of a sovereign, may be, sometimes, dangerous to the lib­erties of a people. A sensible British writer, whom I can quote only from memory and, probably, not with any considerable degree of exactness, has an observation much to our present purpose, which may apply to other nations as well as Britain. ‘Whenever a prince of great abilities, singular virtues, and such eminently popular talents as shall unite all hearts in his favour, shall fill the throne of Great Britain, I tremble for the liberties of my country. Tho Britons are possessed of sufficient resolution and energy to defend their liberties, against any open encroachments of Arbitrary power, yet they may be easily seduced by the bewitching glare of popularity, to surrender those prerogatives to a prince, of singularly eminent talents and virtues, which may prove a rod of iron in the hand of a suc­cessor, of an opposite character.’ A singular in­stance of the danger of the popular virtues of a sove­reign to the liberties of a free people, we have in the famous Gustavus Vasa, commonly called Gustavus the first, the noted Swedish hero of the sixteenth century, who singly projected, and after surmounting an infinity of difficulties, the bare recital of which, were they not sufficiently attested, would stagger belief, effected the de­liverance of his country from the cruel, and tyrannical yoke of Denmark. Having delivered his native land from a galling foreign yoke, he was chosen, first admin­istrator, and soon after, king of Sweden. His country after having had such large experience of his incompar­able abilities, and eminent virtues, loaded him with every honour that a grateful people could bestow; and made such daily, and gradual additions to his preroga­tive, [Page 31] that he became, in a manner, an absolute prince. Such was the wisdom, justice, and energy of his admin­istration, tempered with mildness and benevolence; and so steadily, and uniformly, were all the measures of his administration; directed to that object which is the ulti­mate end of all good government, viz. the prosperity and happiness of his people, that the happy Swedes felt no inconvenience from his extensive, and almost unlim­ited authority. But when his successor, without his tal­ents, and without his virtues, claimed his extensive pre­rogative, Sweden was well nigh reduced to slavery, which it avoided only by wading thro' the horrors of a civil war, in which the son, and immediate successor of the great Gustavus, was justly expelled from that throne which he had debased, but which his worthy fa­ther had so dearly purchased, so richly merited, and fill­ed with such dignity. Happy America, if she but knew, and duly estimated her privileges; in being favoured with an elective, instead of an hereditary government.

A late celebrated traveller, (Margrave of Baden,) speaking of some one of the German Principalities, I forget which, takes notice of the singular happiness and prosperity of the people of that principality, which was chiefly owing to the virtues and talents of the reigning Prince, and contrasts it with the depression and misery of the people, under princes of an opposite character, closes his remarks with this judicious observation. ‘Such a prince is really a public blessing, and that people are singularly fortunate who live under such a government. But much more fortunate are they whose liberties are protected by the government of their country, inde­pendent of the good and in spite of the evil qualities of reigning princes.’ ^*

I confess that for myself, I have sometimes indulged the thought, that it was not a disagreeable event for his country, that our late illustrious and beloved chief had [Page 32] no natural heirs, lest that, in time, the high respect which was so justly paid to the father, might upon the father's account rather than on account of any distinguishing virtues in the son, descend to his posterity. But happy is it for America that her liberties rest upon a firmer basis, than to depend upon the virtues and talents of any single man, though it were even a WASHINGTON. Nor are we exposed to have them wrested from us, by, either the artifice, ambition, or wickedness, of an indi­vidual, till we deserve to loose them. But, when the time comes in which, by our vices we shall forfeit the protection of heaven, and by our faction and disunion, shall sap the foundations of our own strength, then we will deserve to be slaves; and some fortunate, and fac­tious demagogue, aided by a military force, may mount into the seat of supreme authority, and prostrate the lib­erties of his country under his feet. To effect such a change as this, when we shall be ripe for it, a Caesar; a Cromwel or a Buonaparte, will not be wanting. But if public and private virtues shall continue to be cultivated, and the sacred principles of genuine religion and moral­ity treated with due attention: If vice and immorality of every kind could be universally checked and discouraged, if knowledge shall continue to be diffused, and even in­crease among all ranks of our citizens; if the funda­mental principles of our free republican constitution, continue to be duly respected; if the seeds of fac­tion and disunion, might be eradicated, and harmony established among the various departments; if foreign in­fluence, the bane of all free states, could be completely banished, and virtue and talents principally respected, in the advancement of men to places of important public trust,—May we not entertain a hope, that, through tho kindness of indulgent heaven, future WASHINGTONS will be raised up as our necessities may require, and that the fair fabric of American liberty will descend unim­paired to the latest posterity.