204 M E T II GDIS T. 
The grounds of their reparation they declare to be church- 
government, and not doctrines, as affirmed by feme of their 
opponents. They objeft to the old Methodifts, for having 
formed an hierarchy, or prieftly corporation; and fay, 
that in fo doing they have robbed the people of thofe 
privileges which, as members of a Chriftian church, they 
are entitled to both by reafon and fcripture. The New 
Methodifts have therefore attempted to eftablifh every 
part of their church-government on popular principles, 
and profefs to have united as much as poftible the mi- 
nifters and the people in every department of it. This 
is quite contrary to the original government of the Me¬ 
thodifts, which, in the moll important cafes, is confined 
only to the minifters. This, indeed, appears molt plainly, 
when their Conference, or yearly meeting, is considered ; 
for, in this meeting, no perfon, who is not a travelling 
preacher, has ever been buffered to enter as a member of 
at; and, indeed, this is the point to which the preachers 
have always ftedfaftly adhered with the utmoft firmnefs 
and refolution, and on which the division at prefent en¬ 
tirely refts. They are alfo upbraided by the New Metho¬ 
difts, for having abufed the power they -have alfumed; 
-many of tliefe abuS'es are enumerated in various publica¬ 
tions, and particularly in the Preface to the Life of Alex¬ 
ander Kilharn. 
Though thefe are the points on which the divifion 
feems principally to have relied, yet there are feveral 
other things that have contributed to it. It is frequent¬ 
ly eafy to forefee and to calculate the changes in fociety 
that the lapfe of time will produce ; and in no inftance is 
this oblervation better warranted than in this division, 
which moft perfons had long expelled. The old attach¬ 
ment of the Methodifts to the eftablilhed church, which 
.originated in Mr. Welley, and was cherilhed by him and 
many of the preachers by all poftible means, and alfo the 
dislike to thefe fentiments in many others of the preach- 
.ers, and of the focieties, were never-failing Subjects of 
Contention. As all parties are distinguished in their con- 
tefts by Some badge or difcriminating circumltance, fo 
here the receiving, or not receiving, the Lord’s Supper in 
the Established Church, was long , confidered as the cri¬ 
terion of methodiftical zeal or difafteftion. Thus the 
rupture that had been long forefeen by intelligent per¬ 
fons, and for which the minds of the Methodifts had 
been undefignedly prepared, became inevitable when 
Mr. WeSley’s influence no longer interfered. 
The New Methodifts profefs to proceed upon liberal, 
open, and ingenuous, principles, in the conftru< 5 tion of 
their plan of church-government; and their ultimate de¬ 
cision in all disputed matters, is in their popular annual af- 
j'emb.ly., chofen,by certain rules, from among the preachers 
"and the people. Mr. Nightingale Speaks of them, in 1807, 
ns numbering between Six and feven thoufand members ; 
five hundred new members having been added the pre¬ 
ceding year. They have nineteen circuits ; thirty travel¬ 
ling or circuit preachers ; and about Sixty local preachers. 
They had then lately purcliafed the large and elegant 
meeting-houfe, called Gibraltar chapel, in Church-ftreet, 
leading to Bethnal-green. 
The Revival Methodifts form a numerous body of the 
Weileyan Chriftians. They are not, however, all of them 
formally Separated from the old connexion ; though they 
have, in many towns, feparate places for religious worShip. 
The Revivalifts are thofe Methodifts who are more 
particularly partial to noify meetings. They claim, as a 
Chriftian privilege, a right to indulge their propenfities 
to prayer and prail'e, at all times, and on all occafions. 
This liberty they will take during the time the minister 
is engaged in preaching; and indeed at any time when 
they think themlelves called upon by the motions of the 
Spirit of God. They are a Simple, harmlefs, and well- 
meaning, body ; but enthufiaftical and ungovernable to 
an extraordinary degree. In Manchester, Liverpool, 
Leeds, Stockport, Prefton, and Macclesfield, they are 
very numerous. At the laft-mentioned place, they have 
lately (as we are informed by Mr. Nightingale) erefted a 
neat chapel, having been long feparated from their bre¬ 
thren of the old connexion. They have published their 
Rules, in a Small pamphlet, entitled, “ General Rules of 
a Society of Chriftian Revivalifts, at Macclesfield, with a 
Preface, containing a Declaration of Doftrines.” 
Another of the noify lefts of Methodifts, in connexion 
with the preceding, are the Jumpers. The Angular prac¬ 
tice of jumping during the time allotted for religious 
worShip and inftruftion, is chiefly confined to the Metho¬ 
difts in Wales, the followers of Mr. Howel Harris'. The 
praftice began about the year 1760. It was Soon after 
defended by Mr. William Williams (the Welch poet, as 
he is Sometimes Styled) in a pamphlet. I11 the courfe of a 
few years, the advocates of groaning and loud talking, as 
well as of loud Singing, repeating the fame line or Stanza 
over and over thirty or forty times, (as in the Greek 
Church,) became more numerous, and were found among 
fome of the other denominations in the principality, and 
continue to this day. Several of the more zealous itine¬ 
rant preachers in Wales, recommended the people to cry 
out Gogoniant (the Welch word for glory), Amen, &c. &c. 
to put themlelves in violent agitations ; and finally, to 
jump until they were quite exhausted, fo as often to be 
obliged to fall down on the floor, or on the field where 
this kind of vvorfliip was held. If any thing in the pro¬ 
fession of religion, that is abfurd and unreasonable, were 
to furprife us, it would be the cenfure that was call upon 
thole who gently attempted to Stem this tide, which 
threatened the deilruftion of true religion as a “reafonable 
Service.” It is not to be doubted but there are many fin- 
cere and pious perfons to be found among this clafs of 
people ; men who think they are doing God Service, whilft 
they are the viftims of fanaticifm. 
Mr. Evans (author of A Sketch of the Denominations 
of the Chriftian World) fays ; “ About the year 1785, I 
myfelf happened very accidentally to be prefent at a meet¬ 
ing which terminated in jumping. It was held in the 
open air, on a Sunday evening, near Newport in Mon¬ 
mouthshire. The preacher was one of lady Huntingdon’s 
Students, who concluded his fermon with the recommen¬ 
dation of jumping; and, to allow him the praife of con- 
fiftency, he got down from the chair on which he (load, 
and jumped along with them. The arguments he ad¬ 
duced for this purpoSe were, that David danced before the 
ark, that the babe leaped in the womb of Elizabeth, and 
that the man whole lamenefs was removed, leaped and 
praiSed God for the mercy which he had received ! He 
expatiated on thefe topics with uncommon fervency, and 
then drew the inference, that they ought to Show Similar 
expreflions of joy, for the bleffings which Jefus Chrift had 
put into their polfellion. He then gave an empaffioncdfketch 
of the fufferings of the Saviour, and hereby roufed the 
paffions of a few around him into a Slate of violent agita¬ 
tion. About nine men and Seven women, for fome little 
time, rocked to and fro, groaned aloud, and then jumped 
with a kind of frantic fury. Some of the audience flew 
in all direftions ; others gazed on in filent amazement! 
They all gradually dilperfed, except the jumpers, who 
continued their exertions from eight in the evening to 
near eleven at night. I Saw the conclusion of it; they at 
laft kneeled down in a circle, holding each other by the 
hand, while one o'f them prayed with great fervour ; and 
then, all riling up from off their knees, departed. But, 
previous to their difperfion, they wildly pointed up to¬ 
wards the Sky, and reminded one another that they fnould 
foon meet there, and be never again feparated ! I quitted 
the fpot with aftonifhment.” 
In Bingley’s and Evans’s Tour through Wales, (the 
latter author is a clergyman at Bristol,) many more cu¬ 
rious particulars are detailed refpefting the jumpers ; and 
Mr. Malkin, in his “ Scenery, Antiquities, and Biogra¬ 
phy, of South Wales,” (1804.) has given us an amuling 
account of the founder of this feft, and of his colony, or 
faniily, atTrevecca, near Talgarth, about eight miles from 
Brecknock. 
