صور الصفحة
PDF
النشر الإلكتروني
[blocks in formation]

you in what esteem your late agent was held in

this country.

"I remain, my dear Sir,

"Most truly and sincerely yours,
"H. G. O. DWIGHT.

"To the Secretary of the American Bible Society."

At the meeting of the Board of Managers of the American Bible Society, held March 5th, 1857, soon after the intelligence of his death was received, after appropriate remarks by the Rev. Dr. De Witt, the following minute and resolution were unanimously adapted:

"Intelligence having been received, since the last meeting, of the decease of the Rev. Chester N. Righter, the Society's Agent for Turkey and adjacent countries, the Managers would here record their deep sense of sorrow in the loss of this valued helper in our great Bible work. Their hopes of his usefulness, which were strong in the beginning of his labors, have been more than realized in his subsequent history. His communications from the Turkish capital, from Greece, from the Crimea, from Egypt, Palestine, Asia Minor, and lastly from Mesopotamia, all exhibit a union of good judgment, prudence, and industry, united with a modest, catholic piety, which have greatly endeared him to the

[blocks in formation]

Board, and rendered his loss a trial. That the Board have not overvalued their deceased friend is made apparent by the sympathy manifested in his death at the various mission stations which he visited, and by other classes of men around him, both in public and private life. "While the Managers, therefore, record their sorrow at the death of their worthy Agent, they would at the same time be grateful for the good which he was permitted to accomplish; also for the many kind attentions which he received in his last illness, and for the manifold expressions of regard for his memory in that ancient land. where his labors and his life ended.

Resolved, That a copy of the above record be transmitted to the relatives of the deceased, and to those missionary and other friends at the East who have shown so deep a sympathy in the loss sustained.

"COPY OF RESOLUTIONS PASSED AT A MEETING OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE CONSTANTINOPLE BRANCH OF THE EVANGELICAL ALLIANCE, HELD IN PERA, JANUARY 13TH, 1857.

"Resolved, That the news of the sudden death of the Rev. C. N. Righter has filled us with sor

[blocks in formation]

row and dismay, and that we deeply deplore the loss of so useful a laborer in the Bible cause, and so active a member of this Committee.

"That while we bow with humble submission to the Divine will, we would express to the afflicted parents and friends of the deceased our sincere sympathy, commending them to the consolations of Divine Grace, and praying that they may all meet in Glory an unbroken family.

"That these resolutions be forwarded to the parents and friends of our lamented fellow-laborer in America."

The above resolutions were moved by the Rev. Dr. Schauffler, of the American mission, and after an expression on the part of the various members of the Committee present, of their high esteem for Mr. Righter, they were unanimously adopted.

[blocks in formation]

"CONSTANTINOPLE, Jan. 7, 1857.

"MY DEAR SIR: I have just received your note informing me of the unexpected decease of

[blocks in formation]

Mr. Righter. The very kind personal relations which have existed between Mr. Righter and myself, since his stay in this empire, causes me to lament sincerely his untimely death. My intercourse with him for the last two years enabled me to form a correct opinion of his worth as a man, and his piety as a Christian; and while his bland and amiable manners secured for him my friendship, his zeal and energy in the prosecution of the pious task in which he was engaged elicited for him my sincere respect. Pious, without being austere a sincere believer in the doctrines of the religion professed by him, without being intolerant-he gained the friendship and esteem of many, and avoided the enmity of all. His good common sense, his winning manners, his religious zeal, tempered by Christian charity towards all, his energy and perseverance of character, peculiarly fitted him to discharge the duties of the calling to which it was his intention to have devoted his life.

"Although his stay here has been short, his efforts in behalf of Christianity have been untiring, and the good he has done here, by the distribution of the Word of God, will remain behind. him as a monument of his pious exertions, and will, as it developes itself in coming years, keep alive his memory in the recollection of those who were witnesses of his Christian labors.

[blocks in formation]

"If it be a consolation to his relatives to learn that, in fighting the great battle of Christianity, he died upon the field of his struggle in its behalf, still longing to continue the conflict, that consolation is theirs; and may the knowledge of that fact, if it does not reconcile them to his loss, at least soothe them with the hope, that their loss in this world will be his gain in heaven.

"I beg you, should you write to his relatives, to unite my condolence with your own upon this melancholy occasion, and to express to them the deep regret I feel at the death of one for whom I entertained a sincere friendship.

"I am, my dear sir, truly yours,
"CARROLL SPENCE.

"Rev. H. G. O. DWIGHT, Constantinople."

Rev. Henry Jones, his travelling companion, writes:

"There was everything in his life and death calculated to afford comfort. He was a faithful and zealous servant of God, sincerely and earnestly desirous of promoting His glory and the salvation of souls by disseminating that gospel which is the power of God. As an agent of the American Bible Society, no one could labor more devotedly or with more untiring zeal. Wherever we journeyed, in every village, or city, or by the

« السابقةمتابعة »