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escape, an angel in human form came to his side, the mob fell back,
and the servant of Christ passed in safety from the place of danger.
Of his deliverance from the enraged mob on one of these occasions,
Wesley said: “Many endeavored to throw me down while we were
going down hill on a slippery path to the town; as well judging that if I
was once on the ground, I should hardly rise any more. But I made no
stumble at all, nor the least slip, till I was entirely out of their hands....
Although many strove to lay hold on my collar or clothes, to pull me
down, they could not fasten at all: only one got fast hold of the flap
of my waistcoat, which was soon left in his hand; the other flap, in
the pocket of which was a bank note, was torn but half off.... A lusty
man just behind, struck at me several times, with a large oaken stick;
with which if he had struck me once on the back part of my head, it
would have saved him all further trouble. But every time, the blow
was turned aside, I know not how; for I could not move to the right
hand or left.... Another came rushing through the press, and raising
his arm to strike, on a sudden let it drop, and only stroked my head,
saying, ‘What soft hair he has!’ ... The very first men whose hearts
were turned were the heroes of the town, the captains of the rabble
on all occasions, one of them having been a prize fighter at the bear
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gardens....
“By how gentle degrees does God prepare us for His will! Two
years ago, a piece of brick grazed my shoulders. It was a year after
that the stone struck me between the eyes. Last month I received one
blow, and this evening two, one before we came into the town, and
one after we were gone out; but both were as nothing: for though one
man struck me on the breast with all his might, and the other on the
mouth with such force that the blood gushed out immediately, I felt no
more pain from either of the blows than if they had touched me with a
straw.”—John Wesley, Works, vol. 3, pp. 297, 298.
The Methodists of those early days—people as well as preachers—
endured ridicule and persecution, alike from church members and from
the openly irreligious who were inflamed by their misrepresentations.
They were arraigned before courts of justice—such only in name, for
justice was rare in the courts of that time. Often they suffered violence
from their persecutors. Mobs went from house to house, destroying
furniture and goods, plundering whatever they chose, and brutally
abusing men, women, and children. In some instances, public notices