Foreign Mission Journal
JBnutlily by tlm Vorclf'ii ^IisHioii lloui-il of flic Southern Itn])llnt Convention.
"ALL POWER IS GIVEN UNTO ME IN HEAVEN AND IN EARTH. GO YE, THEREFORE , AN1) TEACH ALL NATIONS."
Vol. 12. — Now Series.
RICHMOND, VA., APRIL, 1880.
No. 1.— Whole No. 121.
[Kiiloml itt ll
l’ost-Oillcn nt Klclimoml, Vn
class in. 'liter.]
an second-
FOREIGN MISSION JOURNAL.
RATES PER ANNUM :
One copy . . . . . . .
И*
cte-
Four copies anil over, to onn nililrcps, each . SB cte.
4B-l’leaau remit by Draft, Postal Order, or In Iteclstered
Letter, ami notify at i'ihimitly of any clmatrn In address.
Address, FOREIGN MISSION JOURNAL,
RICHMOND, Va.
FOREIGN MISSION BOARD
OF THE SOUTHERN BAPTIBT CONVENTION,
Looatkd at RICHMOND, VIRGINIA.
Piiksidknt— J. L. M. ODBRY.
ViOK'I*i4t«ti4tNTa.’— Hiram Woods, Bid., J. A. Hnckott,
T,a„ J. 11. Jeter, Vn„ H. 11, McOnllum, Fla., T. II. 1'rltch-
an1., N. O., J. L. Harrows, K.y„ S. Henderson, Alabama,
W. I'oiie Yeaman, Mo., J.
И.
I. Ink, Texas, W,
Г,.
Ivtlpatriclc,
(la., ,1. O. Furman, S. O., Matt. Hillsman, Tenn., T. 1’.
Espy, Ark.
OOimKBfONDI.VO SKCKKTAHY— H.
Л.
TOPPER.
TaKAKUiiKU— J. O. WILLIAMS.
UKCOitutso SkciiktahY— W. 11.
ПЧ’ЛТНМЕГ.
Л шл топ—
JOSEPH F. COTTRELL.
Полиной Млхлоккн.
— J. H. Hawthorne,
.Т.
Il.Wntklne.il.
К.
Ellyeon, W.
Е.
llntcher,
К.
Wortham, Henry McDonald,
W. GcKldla, It. H. Hards,
Л.
K. Dickinson, J. W. Jones, A. 11.
Clarke, J. 11, Winston, T. J. Evans,
О,
II. Winston, S. O.
Clapton, _
i
ПТА
ll communications in reference to the business
о/
Ms Hoard should be addressed lo ll.
Л.
Turret!,
Corrcsjionding Secretary, Richmond, Va.
FORM OF BEQUEST.
“I hereby give unci bequeath unto the Southern
Baptist Convention, formed in Augusta, Georgia,
in the month of May, 1S15, and charteretl by the
Legislature of the State of Georgia, by nn act
passed anti approved December 20th, 1S45, (here
insert the amount, if in money, or 'subject,' if
other property, either real or personal,) for Foreign
Missions.”
JEREMIAH BELL JETER.
Although our papers have been tilled with notices
of tho life and death of tills good man, it. is meet
that some extended record of him should be made
by our organ of the Southern Baptist Convention,
of which ho may be called the founder. It lias not
been stated before that he was the author of the call
from Virginia which brought together in 1345 the
assembly in Augusta, Ga., which organized tho.
Southern Baptist Convention. And so iilentifled
was lie with all of its works, from the beginning,
that in the Convention might be inscribed of him,
as is inscribed In Saint Paul’s Cathedral, of Sir
Christopher Wren: “If you ask for ids monu¬
ment, look about yon.”
The following appeared, February 10th, in the
Doily Dispatch:
hr. Jeter is dead. No announcement could thrill
a greater mini tier of hearts itt our community and
country titan this. Many men were more exten¬
sively known, but no man In America was
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favorably and more widely known as a good and
great man than the Rev. J. B. .fetor, D. D. Tho
exclamation will rise to many lips : “IIow is the
strong stall’ and the beautiful rod broken !" Tills
figure seems as appropriate to this fallen nobleman
of nature and hero of the Christian life as if it had
been penned originally with regard to him. There
was a combination of charming simplicity and
manly vigor and inflexible integrity which is rarely
found in a single character. Though in ago nearly
fourscore years, his spirits seem lo have had still
fingering upon them the dew of yoittli ; while in
Intellectual power ho was tho peer of any man of
Ws denomination, and in the force of moral and
religious example lie was a tower of strength to
our city and to tho Christian world. Ills erect and
lofty form was a lit symbol of the true and majestic
soul within. This was tho greatness of tho man—
his great goodness. “See that obelisk yonder,” said
the philosopher and statesman Confucius, “Itsttp-
riyhtncss i3 its strength.” Dr. Jeter was proficient in
Clio philosophy of not looking back, but of looking
forward in life. He kept up with tho times, and was
projecting and executing to tho Inst. Thus lie kept
young In his feelings, outstripped many of ills con¬
temporaries in labors, anti was developing ids
forces to tho very end. The day lie entered the
room of Ills fatal illness ho was more powerful In
all tho elements of moral and intellectual manhood
than lie was twenty years ago. His eye was not
dim, nor ills natural force abated. Tho transpa¬
rency of his nature was child-like ; his candor was
proverbial; ids sympathies seemed as broad ns the
sufferings of his fellows; and, In glancing over as
much of his long career as our memory can com¬
pass, we do not sen a speck of evil imputation that
lias ever adhered to ids reputation. He was tiie au¬
thor of several volumes, which are marked by tho
perspicuity and perspicacity, anil by tiie prudence
and the piety, which have elevated him among the
classic and Christian writers of our times. He was
tiie Nestor of tiie Baptist press; otto of tiie wisest
counsellors and ablest debaters of tiie Southern
Baptist Convention ; and as a preacher, he was a
confessed model of the Baptist pulpit. It was no
mean compliment that an uncommonly bright child
of seven years, who recently had heard in succes¬
sion a number of able ministers, said, “ I like Dr,
Jeter the best of them all I” Ills life, like his Mas¬
ter's, was simple and sublime; and ids death was
mild and grand as tiie setting sun. Ilis last words
were : “This will take me oil', hut the Lord rclgn-
eth.” The whisperings of a thousand tongues may
well be : “ Know ye not that there is a prince and
a great man fallen tills day in Israel ?”
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.
Jeremiah Bell Jeter was born in Bedford county,
Va., July 21, 1802. lie was converted in his twen¬
tieth year, and baptized tho first Sunday in Decem¬
ber, 1821, in tiie North Fork of Otto river, by Rev.
William llarri». His first public address was made
on tiie bank of this stream in coming out of it on
tiie occasion of his baptism. On tho night of the
loth of January, 1S22, he preached ids llrst sermon
to a small congregation of mountaineers in tiie
gorge between tho Flat Top and Luck mountains,
in Bedford count}-. Ho was present nt tfie organiza¬
tion of' the Baptist General Association of Virginia
in Richmond In 1823; was the first missionary ap¬
pointed by tiie Association, and the last survivor of
tho men 4vho formed that body. On the 4th of
May, 1S24, lie was ordained to the work of the
Christian ministry at High Hills church, Sussex
county, by Rev. Nathaniel Chambliss and Rev.
Joint D. Williams, for the former of whom lie acted
as assistant. Leaving Sussex in tiie spring of 1S2C,
ids first pastorate was with Hill's Creek and Union
Hill churches, Campbell county. In the autumn of
1827 lie removed to the Northern Neck of Virginia,
where he was installed pastor of Morattico church,
in Lancaster county, and subsequently of Wicomi¬
co church, in Northumberland county.
His ministry was eminently successful In this
field, having baptized over 1,000 persons in about
nine years.
CALLED TO RICHMOND.
In the latter part of 1835 lie was invited to the pas¬
torate of tiie First Baptist church of Richmond,
and was installed Its pastor on tiie first Sunday
in January, 1S3G, Rev. James B. Taylor, Rev. Ad¬
dison Ilall, Rev. Samuel Cornelius, Rev. William
F. Nelson, and Rev. Henry Keeling participating
in tiie exercisee. He served his church thirteen
and a half years, baptizing Intoits fellowship nearly
1,000 converts, among whom were Rev. Dr. Gar-
lick, of this city, and Rev. Dr. Henson, of Phila¬
delphia.
During Ids pastorate tiie First church built tiie
boii'ti of worsldp it now occupies, and organized
its colored membership of 2,000 into tho First Afri¬
can church. Tiie latter church was put into pos¬
session of tho old house of worsldp at the corner
of Broad and College streets.
REMOVAL TO ST. LOUIS AND RETURN TO RICH¬
MOND.
In October, 1S40, Dr. Jeter went to St. Louis
and took charge of the Second Baptist church of
that city. He remained there three years, baptized
one hundred and fifty persons, and was instrumen¬
tal In organizing two other churches in tiie. city.
He returned to Richmond in September, 1852, to
assume tiie pastoral care of tiie Grace-Street Bap¬
tist church. The membership of tills church was
nearly doubled under ills ministry. It Increased
from 322 to C00 — the ntimberon the Register at tho
time of Ids resignation in 1S70.
HIS FIELD OF LABOR.
At the time of his deatli Dr. Jeter was the senior
editor of tho Religious Herald, to which lie had
devoted tiie last fourteen years. He was also Pres¬
ident of tho Board of Trustees of the Southern
Baptist Theological Seminary, at Louisville. ICy.;
President of tiie Board of Trustees of Richmond
College, President ol the Board of Trustees of
tiie Richmond Female Institute, Vice President of
the Board of Foreign Missions of the Southern
Baptist Convention, and Vice President of the
State Mission Board of the Baptist General Asso¬
ciation of Virginia.
THE FATAL ILLNESS.
About a month ago lie had a recurrence of nn
acute disease from which be bad suffered at inter¬
vals for many years.
Ills family at first felt no apprehension of a fatal
termination, but lie more than once alluded to his
sickness as tiie probable precursor of death. With¬
in a few days past, however, his friends became se¬
riously alarmed at the change in his condition, and
were fearful of tho worst results.
Tho final stroke came sooner and
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suddenly
than was expected. On Tuesday his physicians,
Drs. James and Lewis, thought hint much improved,
and at ten o’clock that night lie was so free from
pain tiiat they did not deem it necessary to longer
remain with him.
About 3 o'clock on Wednesday morning lie was
seized with severe paroxysms in the region of tho
heart. His physicians were at onco sent for and
promptly came, but were unable to afford any re¬
lief.
HIS LAST HOURS.
Frequently dining the previous day lie had ex¬
pressed great uneasiness about tiie approaching
night, and when the attack came on at 3 o'clock
the next morning, as has been said, he remarked :
“This will carry me off.” He died a few moments
before -l o’clock, in the presence of Ws beloved
wife Mrs. Mary O. Jeter, bis physicians, Drs. James
and Lewis, Mr. and Mrs. Woodward, and Miss
Emily Brown. The immediate cause of lils deatli
was angina pectoris, or stricture of tiie chest.
Notwithstanding tiie severity of his disease lie re¬
tained his mental vigor unto the last. Ills over¬
coming faith was evinced by Ws dying words—
“ The Lord rcigneth.”
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH.
After an eloquent sermon by Dr. J. B. Haw¬
thorne, pastor of the First Baptist church, of Rich¬
mond, in reference to the deatli of Dr. Jeter, on
Sunday, tiie 22d of February, the following ex¬
planatory remarks were made, and report was
adopted, which arc copied from The Commonwealth
of February 21th :
Mr. Moderator — Many things linvo been said
truthfully and beautifully and eloquently of tiie
former pastor of this church, whose body sleeps
under the sod and whose spirit stands loftily before
