482 



Accouni of the late Edward Evanfon., A. M. [Dec. J) 



impoitant truth* In the year l8oi Mr. 

 Evanfon publi/hed a traft, entitled, " Rc- 

 fteftions upon the State of Religion in Chrif- 

 tcndom, &c. at the Comtnencenient of" the 

 XlXth Century of the Chriflian j'Era." This 

 work, which is, in faft, an attempt to ex- 

 plain and iliuftratc the prophecies in the book 

 «f Revelation, was elleenied by the author 

 S! the mod iH)portant of all his publications. 

 In his own explanation of the prophecies, 

 Mr. Evanfon felt very confident ; and from 

 this he anticipated that the nioft important 

 events will take place in the Chriftian world 

 in little more than lialt a century. Speak- 

 ing, again of the lame friend that has already 

 been referred to, and who has lefi faith in 

 the explanation of prophecy than Mv. Evan- 

 <bn, he fays, " Nothing furprifcs me more 

 than that prejudices in fuch a mind as his 

 fhould render it incap;ible or diitinguifhing 

 truth from the moft palpable falfehood. But 

 all this arifcs from liis having paid no regard 

 to the teftimony of prophecy, w hich alone 

 can enable us to difcern the certainty of (he 

 genuine Chrittian faith J by which 1 mean a 

 firm confidence in the fuic .vord of God; from 

 the mere belief without any real convidion 

 of its truth, more than whicli, he tells me, 

 he as well as the late virtuous Dr. Price have 

 never been able to attain. But uho does 

 not fee that this is to exthan.'c the certainty 

 of the revealed will of Cod for thofe unla- 

 tisfaiftory inferences, which th; virtuous 

 among the Heathens were led to make • y 

 their rational knowledge of the Deity, and 

 the fuppolition of his fupcrintending l-'rovi- 

 dence ?" In another letter to the fame 

 friend, he writes, " Tiuly forry am I to fee 

 the clergy in general, of all fctls and deno- 

 minations, efpetiajly fuch liberal ir.indtd 



men as , , and the lalii Dr. Pn'cft- 



k-y, fo ignorant of, inattentive to, and even 

 prejudiced againft, the nioft important |iart 

 of Scripture, -f- which can alunc dilpel the er- 

 rors that have, tor fo man) centuries, be- 

 wildered the underftanding of ail CMivilUn- 

 dom, as far as religion is tojicernrd." From 

 thefe extracls, and more of tiie fame kind 

 might be added from a correfpondence now 

 before ire, it iliould fecm that Mr. Evanfon 



* Anewedit'on of the " Dillbnance" h.*d 

 keen prepared with ure.ir care by Mv. Evan- 

 fo.T, and part of it printed of}" before his 

 d.'ath. He was very dcfiroui, had it pleafed 

 the Wjfs Dil'pofer of Events, to liave lived 

 till the whole v.as finiflied. "Mappl;," 

 fays his very rcfpec^able filier, in a letter to 

 a friend, *' though my brother wa* not per- 

 mitted to fee his work, now in the prefs, 

 «ompleted, he was blett with fuch collefted 

 jdtas, and ftrong intellttrual ability to the 

 lalf, that till only twod.»vs before his death, 

 he corrfdt:d the proof -jheets as they arrived 

 tt'oni the printcr\s. 



t The proi'liccies in the Book «f Reve- 

 btiu.n. 



was not only a firm belisver in the truth of" 

 Chriitiinity, but that he had attained to a 

 much fuller convidion of its reality than 

 falls to the lot of many fincere and excellent 

 Chriftians. We now come to the laft work 

 which Mr. Evanfon completed previoufly to 

 liis death, viz. " second Thoughts on the 

 Trinity," in a letter addrelTcd to the Bifhop 

 of Gloucefter. This publication was avow- 

 edly an anfwcr to his Lordfh.p's defence of 

 the duflrine of the "I rinity ; a'd it contains 

 not only a reply to the learned Prelate's ar- 

 guments, but a jnftification of many of his 

 own opinions anci ihei/iles, advanced in iiis 

 former works. Jt exhibits the marks <A a. 

 ftrong mind, ardently engaged in the .Imco- 

 very of tiutli, and ii.Uy intent upon the pro- 

 pagation of it. Jt appears from a correfpond- 

 ence between Mr. Evanfon and Mr. Timothy 

 Brown, with w hi h the writer of this article 

 has b^cn favoured, and to v.hich he has al- 

 ready referred, that a great part of this laft trail 

 was written while Mr. Evanfon laboured un- 

 der much bodily innrmity. In aniwer to an 

 invitation from Mr. B. to pay him a vifit, 

 and fpeaking of the Eilhops " Thoughts on 

 the Trinity," he writes, " I am fketching 

 out a plan for an anfw'er to them. 1 am of 

 opiHiun his brethren of the Bench have been 

 far more prudent, who have io long followed 

 the fagu advice of Matt. Prior's Merry An- 

 drew : ' Eat your pudding, flavc, and hold 

 your tongue.' Increafmg infirrfities of old 

 age, and a confirnied althmatic complaint, 

 lor which the atmofphere of yqlir great city 

 is peculiarly unfavour.Tble, leave me little 

 expeftation of ever vi.'iting London again." 

 In another letter, written only at the inter- 

 val of eight days, he tells his fr end that he 

 is on the road to Briitol, on account of a fe- 

 rious complaint whicii di manded the aid of 

 the bcft medical and furgical advice. With- 

 in a fortnight of this period he -writes, that 

 the ftate of his hc.iUh, inftead nf being ge- 

 nerally amemled, is become much worfe, and 

 he is refolved to quit Clifton. In conlc- 

 quence, Iiowevcr, of fomc flight benefit 

 w hich lie felt from his medicines, he fubmit- 

 tcdtoafurgic.il opcr.icion April zf.th. About 

 the end of the month of June he had tiie Ia- 

 tisfaflion of fending to his friends copies of 

 his anfwer to the Biibop of Glouceiter ; but 

 in the Ihort Bole thsit accompanied one of 

 them, there were evident marks of its hav- 

 ing been written with a feeble hand; and iq 

 three vyeeke after, by the pen of Mrs. Evan- 

 fon, he announces to his friend the melan- 

 choly information of a paralytic feizure. 

 This, which at firft was but flight, gradually 

 incrcaled, till it terminated his valuable lite, 

 September 25, igo;. During the latter 

 nionths of this good man's life he luttered 

 very much from bodily infirmity and acuta 

 pain , vet his fortitude and patience never 

 leem to have deferted him. To the laft he 

 was intent upon the- fprcad of reIig"ious know- 

 ledge, and oeepiy iiicerefted in theological 

 <iiculhen 



