'250 History of Methodism 



faith), and many others were deeply wrought upon. Brother James 

 llinton (one of our preachers), who has rested from his labors, was 

 one of the number who experienced salvation at that time. He for- 

 sook all and traveled with me, and remained a pattern of piety to the 

 day of his death. AVhen we arrived at Mr. D.'s, he met me with ex- 

 ceeding great joy, nor did he leave me till I had traveled more than 

 two hundred miles ; nay, he said he would forsake all and go with me 

 till he found mercy. It pleased God, the second day after we arrived 

 in Cumberland, to give him power, in the midst of a large congrega- 

 tion, to stand up and praise the Almighty. It resembled the time 

 when Nehemiah laid the foundations of the temple, such was the 

 shouting by the believers and weeping by the mourners. Here I 

 must not forget to mention another circumstance which happened in 

 the course of this journey. When I arrived at Mr. D.'s, I found 

 Mr. M. and his lady (this gentleman had married a sister of Mrs* 

 D.). Mrs. M. had got some gracious impressions by conversing 

 with her sister. She and her husband heard the word, and it was 

 not in vain. They both felt deep convictions, and soon after ex- 

 perienced the power of redeeming love. Hundreds of other people, 

 in the course of this journey, Avere truly alarmed. Another brother 

 of Mr. D. also turned to the Lord Jesus. Such a change had never 

 been seen in that part of the country. Since that time, a circuit 

 has been formed, now known by the name of Bladen Circuity Being 

 unable to travel at large, I spent most of the summer ,(1780) on 

 I\ew Hope Circuit and on Bladen, during which time we had some 

 happy seasons ; but the troubles of the war began so to affect the 

 people that I was obliged to retire tp„ Virgin ia in thg beginning of 

 the wi nter. (Letter to Mr. Wesley, Charleston, May 4, 1791.) 



The relentless Tory war, that desolated the country- 

 watered by Deep Kiver and the Cape Fear, as late as 

 1782, suspended the visits of the preachers to this 

 region till after the conclusion of peace, September 

 3, 1783, when Beverly Allen and James Hinton were 

 sent (1784) to form the Wilmington Circuit. A gen- 

 tleman of intelligence, residing in Duplin county in 

 1810, just north of New Hanover, in which Wilming- 

 ton is situated, in giving an account of the religion, 

 number of churches and communicants in his county, 



