Rev. John F. Wright [pp. 449-453]

LADIES' REPOSITORY.
that no sacrifice was too great, no cross too heavy,
no suffering too intense in the service of One who
had done so much for him.
He believed, furthermore, that the great Head
of the Church could and would so assist and
bless his labors as to make them a blessing to
others. He soon received permission from Rev.
R. Thompson, preacher in charge of Gadkin circuit, to exhort. His first effort was in August,
1814. However much others may have been
pleased with his performance, the young exhorter
himself, as is quite usual in such cases, was very
much dissatisfied- so much so, indeed, that the
enemy took occasion to tempt him to desist from
all further labors in public. But he had suffered
too much in arriving at a fixed purpose to be
easily turned aside from what he firmly believed
to be the path of duty.
In the Autumn of 1814, Rev. Waldell Johnson, the junior preacher on the Gadkin circuitwhich was three hundred miles round-was disabled by sickness, and it was proposed that John
F. Wright, then a youth of nineteen years, accompany and assist the invalid preacher. Though
he had not then attempted the regular exposition
of a text, it was doubtless considered that no
better opportunity would offer for testing his
abilities as a preacher, and in obedience to the
constituted authorities he started out on his first
mission, but with great fear and trembling. His
first text was, "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?" The sermon was well
received, and produced considerable effect. The
Rev. Mr. Johnson encouraged the young man by
assuring him that with a good deal of practice
he would probabiy make a preacher. A tender
regard for Mr. Wright's humility probably prevented a very strong expression from his traveling companion. The second preaching effort was
at Elkhorn, on the text, "But one thing, is needful," etc.
The circuit was principally in a-mountainouts region and very thinly populated. The preacherJohnson-gave young Wright some instructions
about the appointments, how to find them, what
to do at them, etc., and then proposed to go
across the circuit, and meet him in about ten
days. This arrangement, while it evinced much
confidence in the youthful preacher, must nevertheless have been somewhat embarrassing, as
it left him entirely among strangers, with no
one to introduce him. The rides were long and
tiresome, and the habitations "few and far between." In attempting to reach a given point
one afternoon, in order that he might reach his
appointment next day, he became confused and
lost the way. As the darkness of night was
gathering over his head, he determined to beg
for quarters at the first house he could find.
He was soon made glad by the sight of a humble dwelling, and was cordially received by a
poor family, who seemed to have scarce room
in their small house for their own accommodation. When he explained the cause of his wandering astray among the hills in which dwelt
this rustic houselhold; the old lady exclaimed
with great earnestness, "Surely heaven and
earth are coming together; a Methodist preacher
has come to our house!"
He read the Word of God and prayed with
the family, after which a portion of a small bed
was assigned him, and was gratefully acceptedthe accommodations being infinitely better than
a night's lodging in the wilderness, the only
alternative. Early next morning he set off -for
his preaching-place, still at a considerable distance, but having daylight got along without
further trouble and reached the place in time.
Here he was cordially received and generously
entertained by a local preacher, Fletcher by
name, who, with his excellent lady, made the
young itinerant feel quite at home. The next
day being Sabbath he preached at Union Church,
where the congregation was much larger than
he had ever attempted to address before, but
the Word found its way to the hearts of the
people.
On the following Wednesday he set off with
a view to reach an appointment eighteen miles
distant. There were but few houses on or near
the road, and he missed the way again, and
wandered among the hills till some time after
dark. Finding himself lost in the woods, and
fearing to travel in the darkness of the night
lest his horse should stumble and fall, owing to
the uneven surface of the country, he dismounted and hitched his horse; but before
making up his mind to bivouac in the woods,
he hallooed at the top of his voice, but received
no answer. At last he began to make arrangements for the night. His saddle-bags made a
very good pillow, and the night being exceedingly cold, he wrapped a bear-skin about his
feet and threw his saddle over his knees, being
the only available coverlet for the occasion except his overcoat, which he kept on. His plan
was to lie down and sleep as long as the cold
would allow and then jump up and take exercise awhile. Fortunately he never got asleep
during the whole night-if he had it might
have been his last. Under the circumstances
he naturally felt unhappy and anxious, and the
long night wore away very slowly. The stillness was broken only by the howlings of wild
beasts, a music to which the benighted traveler
had never listened before, and which he sup
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