132 MINISTRY AT WARRINGTON. [Chap. IV. 



he thought it the most singular thing he ever saw ; and yet the 

 prison-records at that time quite confirmed Philip's second 

 reason— the reformation of the offender was too commonly- 

 neglected. Some condemned the placard as positively im- 

 moral, since it held up the law of the land to reprobation ; but 

 this sort of immorality is characteristic of those who revere a 

 higher law. As a minister of Christ, he set forth what he 

 regarded as his Christian duty. Those who had laboured 

 among the criminal class had no fear that he was offering a 

 temptation to another robbery.* Great indignation was ex- 

 pressed among the poor at the outrage : to rob one who was 

 such a friend to them all was like robbing a church ! For his 

 own part he did not feel it a hard trial, and he made it an 

 excuse for giving away the remainder of his silver spoons, that 

 there might be one temptation in the house the less ! A few 

 gentlemen were determined that he should lose nothing in 

 money value, and presented him with the amount * but he 

 decidedly refused to accept it, except on condition that he 

 might give it to one of his Oberlin workmen, to enable him to 

 carry out his wish to emigrate to America. 



In December, 185 1, the first Conference on Preventive and 

 Reformatory Schools was held at Birmingham. His sister 

 Mary \ and Mr. M. D. Hill were the prime movers in it ; and 

 the subject was one to enlist Philip's sympathy. But he wrote 

 that he had not the head to master the subject as she desired, 

 and finding that she would have my companionship, he did not 

 attend. She afterwards urged him to undertake the charge of a 

 reformatory ; but he replied that he had not now that amount 

 of health and " aggressive strength" which would enable him 

 to undertake such a difficult duty — that he shrank from respon- 



* Another attempt was ludicrously frustrated. It was very easy to 

 enter his house by day, and a thief hid himself (as was afterwards traced 

 by footprints) under a bed. At night he entered Philip's bedroom, the , 

 door of which was open as usual. Philip, supposing it to be his dog, made 

 an amusing outcry — "Get out, you beast," etc. The thief, whose shoes 

 were orf, took the hint ; a pattering was heard down the stairs, — and a loud 

 barking at the bottom of them when the dog detected the stranger, who 

 went off empty handed ! 



t See " The Life and Work of Mary Carpenter," p. 154. 



