38 Four Letters ivntten by the Rev. George Millard. 



because I find it, in its consequences, to be an excellent way for the promoting 

 of X an Knowledge, I suppose may not be unacceptable to y e Society, if I lay 



it before them. Having for some years pass't, to my sorrow observ'd that 



y e Pious Exercise of Singing Psalms in the Publick- worship of God was 

 confin'd in my own Church (as indeed it is in most of our Countrey- Churches) 

 only to a few select Persons in the Congregation, and these for the most part 

 plac'd in a Gallery by themselves, or some other apartment in the Church, 

 and all Sitting down during the Performance, whilst the rest of y e people 

 likewise Sit, and are Silent, & seem no way concern'd in that part of Divine 

 Worship ; I resolv'd, if possible, to redress this Grievance in my Parish 

 Church : and, I bless God, I have effectually done it. The method I took for 

 it was this : after several Discourses from y e Pulpit, setting forth the necessity, 

 usefullness, and Advantage of y e Duty, &c : I began on the 6 th day of February 

 last to teach all o r . Charity Children, now at School, to Sing Psalms by Notes ; 

 and I found y m so apt to learn, that by Exercising them only 2 hours in a day, 

 they became perfect in 4 Tunes in little more than a week : Insomuch that 

 on y e 2 d . Sunday after, they Sung them in the Church, to the Admiration of 

 the whole Congregation then present. This Speedy Improvement of theirs 

 in the Art of Singing, made most of the young men & maidens, and little 

 Children of the Parish, (to the number of 160 and odd) very desirous to be 

 admitted to y e same Instruction : and to Encourage and assist y m all therein, 

 I gave to every one of them, a little Book for that purpose ; pricking down 

 the Tunes for them, and appointing y m to meet me every Tuesday, Thursday, 

 & Saturday at night in the Church ; where we usually sang about an hour 

 and a half : And every Sunday in the Afternoon, I appointed 2 or 3 Psalms 

 to be sung before Divine Service began ; and the like performance after it was 

 over : which practice we still keep up ; and the later I constantly attend and 

 give out y e Psalms, my Self. 'Tis hardly possible for me to express what a 

 fondness the generality of my People, both old and young, now have for this 

 Divine Ordinance of Singing Psalms, which before was almost laid aside, or 

 however observ'd but by a very few. 



By this pious Artifice our Church is now so fill'd y l we have scarce Boom 

 enough to contain the People, notwithstanding we added an Isle that holds 

 more than 100, when we rebuilt it, about 4 years agoe. 'Tis to the great Joy 

 of my Soul, that by this little Labour, and the Blessing of God upon it, (to 

 whose name only be all the Glory) I have brought the greater Number of my 

 Congregation to Joyne in the Singing of Psalms ; and I doubt not but, in a 

 very little time more, the whole will have skill enough to bear a part in this 

 Heavenly Exercise : To facilitate which, I oblige them to keep only to a few 

 tunes, and those the oldest, and most Grave ; and I require them to perform it 

 always standing, as the most becoming posture for it ; which is now observed 

 throughout the whole Church, as well by those that doe not, as by those that 

 doe sing. 



About 3 weeks since, my Parish Clark, who also teaches the Charity 

 Children, was taken ill, and very likely to have Dyed. This made me 

 solicitous where I should get another to succeed him ; and having no one in 

 my Parish so well Qualify'd both for the Clarkship, and teaching School, as 

 I c d . wish, I resolv'd to make Application to the Society to get me one that 



