40 Life and Character of Nathaniel Bowditch. 



Dr. Bowditch was, in all his habits of life, a very regular and 

 temperate man. He never tasted any wine till the age of thirty- 

 five. He approved the remarkable changes which have been ef- 

 fected in the customs of society, within a few years, by " the 

 temperance reform," and he heartily rejoiced in the success of 

 that good cause. God bless it and speed it ! 



In his religious views, Dr. Bowditch was, from examination 

 and conviction, a firm and decided Unitarian. His parents were 

 Episcopalians, and he himself had been educated in the tenets of 

 that church. But he had no taste for the polemics or peculiarities 

 of any sect, and did not love to dwell on the distinctive and di- 

 viding points of christian doctrine. His religion was rather an 

 inward sentiment, flowing out into the life, and revealing itself in 

 his character and actions. It was at all times, and at all periods 

 of his life, a controlling and sustaining principle. He confided in 

 the providence and benignity of his Heavenly Father, as revealed 

 by his blessed Son, our Lord, and had the most unshaken confi- 

 dence in the wisdom and rectitude of all the divine appointments. 

 He looked forward with firm faith to an immortality in the spirit- 

 ual world. 



He said to one, in his last illness, ^' From my boyhood my 

 mind has been religiously impressed. I never did or could ques- 

 tion the existence of a Superintending Being, and that he took an 

 interest in the afi"airs of men. I have always endeavored to regu- 

 late my life in subjection to his will, and studied to bring my mind 

 to an acquiescence in his dispensations ; and now, at its close, I 

 look, back with gratitude for the manner in which he has distin- 

 guished me, and for the many blessings of my lot. I can only 

 say, that I am content, that I go willingly, resigned, and satis- 

 fied." To another he said, " I cannot remember when I had not 

 a deep feeling of religious truth and accountableness, and when I 

 did not act from it, or endeavor to. In my boyish days, when 

 some of my companions who had become infected with Tom 

 Paine's infidelity, broached his notions in conversation with me, I 

 battled it with them stoutly, not exactly with the logic you would 

 get from Locke, but with the logic I found here, (pointing to his 

 breast.) and here it has always been, my guide and support ; it 

 is my support still. My whole life, has been crowned with bles- 

 sings beyond my deserts. I am still surrounded with blessings 

 unnumbered. Why should I distrust the goodness of God ? 



