Personal Recollections of Birmingham and Birmingham Men | Page 9

days. His
voice was good, and his pale, thoughtful, intelligent face was very
striking. He was a fascinating preacher, and he became the most
popular minister in the town. The church was soon found to be too
small for the crowds who wished to hear, and alterations of an
extensive nature were made to give greater accommodation. Mr. Barrett
had then the peculiarity in his manner of sounding certain vowels,

which he still retains--always pronouncing the word "turn," for instance,
as if it were written "tarn." I remember hearing him once preach from
the text, 1 Cor., iii., 23, which he announced as follows: "The farst
book of Corinthians, the thard chaptar, and the twenty-thard varse."
Although still hale, active, and comparatively young-looking, he is by
far the oldest incumbent in Birmingham, having held the living nearly
forty years.
St. George's Church then looked comparatively clean and new. A
curious incident occurred here in May, 1833, an account of which I had
from the lips of a son of the then churchwarden. Birmingham was
visited by a very severe epidemic of influenza, which was so general
that few households escaped. Nor was the epidemic confined to
mankind; horses were attacked, and the proprietor of "The Hen and
Chickens" lost by death sixteen horses in one day. So many of the
clergy and ministers were ill, that some of the places of worship had to
be closed for a time. St. George's, which had a rector and two curates,
was kept open, although all its clergy were on the sick list. It was
feared, however, that on one particular Sunday it would have to be
closed. Application had been made to clergymen at a distance, but all,
dreading infection, were afraid to come to the town, so that aid from
outside could not be had. A consultation was held, and one of the
curates, although weak and ill, undertook to conduct the devotional part
of the service, but felt unable to preach. An announcement to be read
by the "clerk" was written out by the rector, and was, no doubt,
properly punctuated. At the close of the prayers, the next morning, the
clerk arose, paper in hand, and proceeded to read as follows, without
break, pause, or change of tone: "I am desired to give notice that in
consequence of the illness of the whole of the clergymen attached to
this church there will be no sermon here this morning 'Praise God from
whom all blessings flow.'"
John Angell James was then at the head of the Nonconformists of the
town, and was in the prime of his intellectual powers. He was very
popular as a preacher, and the chapel in Carrs Lane was always well
filled. Mr. Wm. Beaumont, the bank manager, acted as precentor,
reading aloud the words of the hymns to be sung and the notices of

coming religious events. Mr. James had a powerful voice and an
impressive manner, and occasionally was very eloquent. I remember a
passage, which struck me at the time as being very forcible. He was
deprecating the influence which the works of Byron had upon the
youthful mind, and, speaking of the poet, said: "He wrote as with the
pen of an archangel, dipped in the lava which issues from the
bottomless pit." Mr. James was not a classical scholar; indeed, he had
only received a very moderate amount of instruction. He was intended
by his parents for a tradesman, and in fact was apprenticed to a draper
at Poole. I believe, however, that the indentures were cancelled, for he
became a preacher before he was twenty years of age. For myself, I
always thought him an over-rated man. There was a narrowness of
mind; there was a want of sympathy with the works of great poets and
artists; and there was an intense hatred of the drama. There was, too, a
dogmatic, egotistic manner, which led him always to enunciate his own
thoughts as if they were absolutely true and incontrovertible. He was
not a man to doubt or hesitate; he did not say "It may be," or "It is
probable," but always "It is." He was a good pastor, however. During
his long and useful ministerial career of more than half a century, he
had but one fold and one flock. He was a firm disciplinarian; was
somewhat of a clerical martinet; but his people liked him, and were
cheerfully obedient; and he descended to the grave full of abundant
honour.
Timothy East, of Steelhouse Lane Chapel, was a man of far greater
mental capacity and culture. His sermons were clear, logical,
conclusive, and earnest. It is not generally known that he was a
voluminous writer. He was a frequent contributor to some of the best
periodicals of his time. He wrote