interfere with this glorious calling. It is
painful to see some men merge the ministerial character in some
pitiful clerkship--some book-keeping affair. And worst of all,
these parties take it into their head, generally amongst us, to
consider themselves and their office as much higher than that of
the messengers of Christ!

* * * * *

Two deaths of notable representative men in Canadian Methodism occurred
during 1846:--Rev. Thomas Whitehead and Rev. James Evans. Rev. Thomas
Whitehead was the venerated representative of the early pioneers of
Methodism in Upper Canada, and Rev. James Evans was a remarkable type of
the self-sacrificing and devoted missionaries of that Church in the
great North-west. A brief sketch of each of these ministers will
illustrate points in the history of Methodism in Upper Canada, without
which the account of Dr. Ryerson's career and labours would be
incomplete,--especially as he had to do with both of these ministers
during his lifetime. Rev. Mr. Whitehead was one of these so-called
"Yankee Methodists," whom Dr. Ryerson so often and so strenuously
defended against the charge of disloyalty; and Rev. James Evans was one
of the five brethren with whom he remonstrated so earnestly and yet so
kindly in 1833. (See page 131.)

Rev. Thomas Whitehead was in many respects a strongly-marked
representative man. He was elected President at the memorable Special
Conference held, in the dark days of the Church, in 1840. (Page 274.) A
characteristic letter from him to Dr. Ryerson will be found on page
276. Mr. Whitehead was born in Duchess County, New York, in December
1762, when it was still a British Province. He was, therefore, not a
"Yankee Methodist," but a United Empire Loyalist. He commenced his
ministry in 1783, and went on a mission to Nova Scotia and New
Brunswick, where he remained from 1786 until 1804. In September, 1806,
he was sent by Bishop Asbury to Upper Canada, where he resided for forty
years. He preached his last sermon on Christmas Day, 1845. He was in the
ministry 62 years, and died at Burford in January, 1846, aged 83 years.

Rev. James Evans was one of the most noted missionaries of the
North-west; and was specially so from the fact that, by his wonderful
inventions of the syllabic character in the Cree language, he has
conferred untold blessings upon the Indian tribes and missions of all
the Churches in that vast North-West t