USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Barre > Memorial of the one hundredth anniversary of the Incorporation of the town of Barre, June 17, 1874 ... > Part 4
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help to Defend themselves but also have numbers to spare for the Defence of other places above them
And your Petitioners shall ever pray as Bound, &c.
THOMAS PRINCE -
JONAS CLARKE
Proprits
THOMAS HUBBARD
Committee.
CORNELIUS WALDO
The Inhabitants Do hereby further manifest their desire by signing.
John Wallis
Joseph Stevens
Wm Caldwell Junr
Jabez Hill
James Holden
James Heaton Junr
James Heaton
George Caldwell
Thomas Tayler
Matthew Caldwell
Marmaduke Black
Thomas Holden
Nath1 Davis
Wm Caldwell ye 3d
James Caldwell
Sam1 Heaton
William Caldwell
Timy Nurss
Jonathan Metcalfe
Israel Gates
Robt Cunningham
Arthr Forbush
Joseph Metcalfe
Abner Lee
William Forbush
Jothem Rice
John Caldwell
Benjn Lee
APRL 6, 1749.
In the House of Repres Apl 14, 1749.
Read & Ordered That the Prayer of the Petition be so far Granted that the Lands in the North Westerly Quarter of the Town Ship of Rutland Described in sd Petition and Delineated in the plan presented therewith and the Inhabitants thereon be erected into a Seperate District with full Power to choose Town officers Grant & raise money from time to time to defray the necessary charges arising upon sd District and for managing ye other affares Relating to ye sd District, setling a minister, Erect- ing a meeting house Granting & making all needful Roads & highways, together with all other powers priviledges & immuni- ties ye Towns by Law enjoy Saving only the priviledge of sending
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one or more Representvs to the general Assembly in lieu whereof there is hereby declared to be Reserved to them the sd Inhab- itants all & every ye powers rights & priviledges of joyning with the Town of Rutland in the choice of Representatives & of being chosed to Represent sd Town which by Law they now may or do enjoy, and the sd Town of Rutland are hereby required to notify the sd North West Quarter of all meetings for the choice of Representatives in like manner as they now by Law are required to notify them. And it is further ordered that Thomas Tayler an Inhabitant of sd North Weste Quarter be hereby empowered to call a meeting of sd District for the choice of Officers for the present year on the fifteenth of June next to be held at sd place of which he is to give notice by posting up a notification in some publick place in sd Districk seven Days at least before the time of holding sd meeting. Also ordered that the Petitioners notify the non Resident proprietors of the Lands mentioned in sd Petition by Inserting the substance of sd Petition so far as it relates to a Tax in the Boston Gazette or some other publick prints three Weeks successively That they shew cause if any they have on the Second Fryday of the Next May Sessions why the prayer thereof Respecting a Tax should not be Granted.
Sent up for Concurrance
T. HUTCHINSON Speak™ In Council April 14, 1749.
Read & Concurd J. WILLARD, Secty Consented to WILLIAM SHIRLEY.
Notice was given by Advertizement in the Boston Gazette a copy of which signed by Order of the Committee,
JONAS CLARK props clerk is
entered upon the records.
In Council Fune 13th 1749.
Read again and it appearing that the Non resident Proprietors had been notified agreeable to the foregoing order and no answer or objection being made, therefore ordered that there be a Tax of One penny half penny of the last emition per acre annually be
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levied & assessed upon every standard Acre in the North Westerly Quartr of Rutland now erected into a seperate District (Except- ing only upon the Land granted to the Minister & school) for the Term of five years next ensuing for erecting a meeting House settling & maintaining a minister & laying out & clearing Roads therein or for any Other service of a Publick nature [and the assessors of the sd District for the time being are hereby Impow- ered to assess the proprietors of the sd lands & the Collectors or Constables to Collect & pay in the same to the Treasurer of the sd District for the time being accordingly].
Sent down for Concurrance by ordr of the Board
JOHN OSBORNE.
In the House of Reprtus Fune 19, 1749. Read & Concurred J. DWIGHT Speaker. In Council 20, 1749. Read & Concurred SAML HOLBROOK Depty Secty Consentd to W. SHIRLEY.
N. B. The final passage inserted between the Two Crotchets [ ] was added by the council & agreed to by the house of rep- restvs & consented to by the Governor.
In the year 1749, then, the North-west Quarter was incorporated by the name of Rutland District. The inhabitants acquired a legal corporate existence with all rights belonging to a town, save only that of being represented in the General Court. From this time they begin to feel working in them that spirit of independence which town governments have done so much to foster. They are no longer part and parcel of a municipality whose centre is far distant, nor under the rule of a board of absentee Proprietors. They can elect officers, lay out roads, establish
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schools, build a meeting-house, settle a minister, assess and collect taxes, without asking anybody's leave. They are "their own men." They discuss the inter- "ests of their district, manage their local affairs, are vigilant for the rights of the colonies, upon which the mother-country has begun already to make encroach- ments, with such pride and sense of personal liberty as were felt, to the same degree, nowhere on earth as in the towns of New England.
Let it be here observed, that in all their consulta- tions the Proprietors appear to have been actuated by a generous view of the immediate needs, and a wise forecast for the future well-being, of the settlement. At a meeting held in Boston, May 4, 1742, they took action upon these articles: (1) "To agree with some suitable person to prepare and raise the frame of a meeting-house within the 'North-west Quarter,' of such dimensions as the Proprietors shall deter- mine." (2) "To give some encouragement for obtain- ing occasional preaching." Again, at an adjourned meeting, Sept. 1, 1743, it was voted, "That 16£s (old tenor) be allowed and paid to Mr. John Cald- well to defray the charge of a minister's preaching to the inhabitants of the 'North-west Quarter' one month the last winter." And again, Dec. 17, 1744, it was voted as follows: "Some of the settlers having represented the great difficulty they labor under by reason of their distance from all places of publick worship, and desiring the assistance of the Proprietors toward the procuring of preaching among
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themselves, -Voted, That 80£s (old tenor) be allowed them for obtaining preaching for one year next com- ing, to be paid to such as the settlers shall choose a committee for that purpose." Similar grants for preaching were made till the year 1750, when 100Es was voted. At the same date, it was voted, "That 12£s (old tenor) be allowed and paid to John Cald- well for erecting a meeting-house in the north-west- erly district of Rutland, and to be by him applied towards the charge of erecting the same." Several years earlier, Dec. 27, 1744, it had been voted, “ To have a saw-mill built by Samuel Willard, and that he take an obligation to keep it in repair fifteen years, supply boards to build a meeting-house and house of minister for 3£s (old tenor) per thousand ; and sell pro- prietors and settlers boards at 4£s per thousand; and to saw logs brought to the mill at the halves."
In these provisions we see the initial steps towards a house of worship and the stated preaching of the gospel. The work of building a meeting-house went forward rather slowly; but in the year 1753 they had the satisfaction of seeing it completed. Though we have no account of its dedication, we can well imagine with what joy and thankfulness the worshippers first took their seats within its plain and humble, but, to them, holy and beautiful walls.
The meeting-house completed, they proceeded, with the help of neighboring ministers, to organize a church. This was accomplished July 29, 1753; and in the month of October following, the Rev. Thomas
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Frink was installed pastor of "The Congregational Church and Society in Rutland District." Of Mr. Frink's ministry not much is known to his advantage. But though the notices of him are few and meagre, they are sufficient to indicate that he was a man of more than ordinary abilities and great strength of will, which, combined with an irascible temper, made him self- asserting and imperious. He was born in Sudbury, and graduated at Harvard University in the class of 1722. With whom he studied divinity is not known; but five years after his graduation he was ordained in Rutland, and continued the minister of that town thirteen years, from 1727 to 1740. Dismissed in 1740, he was installed four years later in the Third Church of Plymouth. The fact that Mr. Chauncy, of the First Church in Boston, preached the sermon at his installation, raises a suggestion that he was a man of some note. This suggestion is confirmed by the fact that he was chosen to preach the sermon on the occasion of the ordination of Mr. John Willard at Stafford, Conn., in 1757, and also the annual " Elec- tion Sermon" in 1758, while he was minister of this town. A copy of the " Election Sermon " has fallen into my hands. No one can read it without perceiv- ing that the author was a man of vigorous intellect and extensive erudition. His ministry in Plymouth was not of long duration, - only four years. It came to an end " by mutual consent, no blame attaching to either pastor or people." At its termination, in 1748, he returned to Rutland, and nothing is heard of him
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from that time till his settlement here in 1753. His ministry in the district was of thirteen years' duration. Before its close such misunderstandings had arisen between him and a majority of the church-members as led to the calling of a mutual council to hear the parties and adjudicate the case. The council was composed of eminent men, both clerical and lay, all from distant churches, and was in session six days.
The following is a copy of the " Result ": -
" An Ecclesiastical Council, consisting of five churches, by the elders and messengers from each, that is to say, -
I. Stephen Williams, pastor of a church in Springfield, Simon Colton, messenger ;
2. Seth Storer, pastor, Watertown, Deacon Samuel Fisk, messenger ;
3. David Parsons, pastor, Amherst, Simeon Strong, messenger ;
4. Robert Brick, pastor, Springfield, Edward Pynchon, Esq., messenger ;
5. Jonathan Mahew, pastor, West Church, Boston, Andrew Craig, messenger ;
in pursuance of 'Letters Missive' from the Rev. Mr. Thomas Frink, in the name of the church and of the aggrieved in Rut- land District, to look into some affairs that labor in said church, to use their endeavors for an accommodation and to give their best advice, being convened in said District June 10th, 1766, for the purpose aforesaid, after solemn repeated prayer to Almighty God for light and direction, and after six days spent in hearing the parties and deliberating on the matters laid before them, came unanimously unto the following result in every particular of it, viz. : -
Ist. That the Rev. Mr. Thomas Frink is justly chargeable with proceeding in a very arbitrary manner with respect to Mr. Nathaniel Davis in desiring him to withdraw himself from the communion of the church, and also for using him very indecently in a discourse concerning the duty of tything-men, also in reviling
8
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him in a more private way, and speaking both to and of him in a most contemptuous, opprobrious manner, all, so far as we can learn, without any just foundation.
2dly. Voted unanimously, That the Rev. Mr. Frink has been very culpable with respect to Capt. Lee in promoting a sort of inquisition into his private Domestick concerns or the govern- ment of his family ; in declining to pray at his house at a time of affliction when desired, as also in treating him with most outra- geous language from time to time, such as no Christian ought on the greatest provocation to use respecting another.
3dly. It has not by any means appeared to us that Mr. Jed. Winslow has discovered an implacable disposition with respect to Mr. Robinson, or that he ever made any formal confession of having treated him in an injurious manner, as has been intimated by some, though he did indeed use some conciliatory expressions for the sake of peace ; and consequently, that the Rev. Mr. Frink, in what he calls a pastoral admonition or sharp rebuke of said Winslow before the church, gave him just and great cause of uneasiness, especially as he did not lie under any formal censure of the church. It also appears to us that Mr. Winslow was treated in an unjustifiable manner in being desired by message from the pastor to abstain from the communion ; that he was repeatedly, both in public and private, used by the Rev. Mr. Frink with extremely hard, abusive, and scurrilous language, altogether unbecoming a minister of the gospel towards a brother. Neither upon supposition that Mr. Winslow had made such a confession as Mr. Frink and some others suppose he did in the church can we in any measure justify Mr. Frink in refusing to him a copy thereof when repeatedly requested, and also in hav- ing denied several other papers to Mr. Winslow and some of the aggrieved contrary to his repeated engagements, at the same time denying that he had promised to do so.
4thly. It appears to us that that article of grievance wherein the Rev. Mr. Frink is charged with uttering numerous contempt- uous and defamatory speeches concerning many of the regular standing ministers of this county, tending to obstruct the impor- tant uses of the ministry and to the great reproach of religion, has been very fully supported by evidence, and that even the righteous dead whose memory is blessed have some of them been treated by him with great indecency and undeserved contempt.
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5thly. To us it appears from indisputable evidence that with- out any just provocation, and even notwithstanding very kind and respectful treatment, from John Caldwell, Esq., Mr. Frink has frequently used him in the most abusive and unchristian manner, with much undeserved contempt, with bitter reviling, and with railings in the highest degree both in publick and in private, such railings as we have scarce if at all known any professed Christian chargeable with towards a brother, much less any Christian minister towards a respectable person of his pastoral charge.
6thly. As to those two complaints against the Rev. Mr. Frink, that he has neglected to catechise the children of his pastoral charge and to preach lectures upon week-days, it is our opinion that though these methods have been and are serviceable to the interests of religion, yet we think that the particular method in which children are to be instructed and the preaching of lectures are in a good measure prudential matters ; and after hearing what Mr. Frink has to say relative to his conduct in these respects, we do not think him justly censurable by this Council.
7thly. To us it appears that in a particular instance the Rev. Mr. Frink claimed and exercised a power to adjourn a church meeting after the mind of the church to the contrary had been requested by and signified to him, and that he did this in such a manner and under such particular circumstances as strongly indicated an overbearing, arbitrary disposition in him.
8thly. It also appears to us that on a particular occasion the Rev. Mr. Frink did in an unconstitutional and arbitrary man- ner deny to brethren of the church, namely, Capt. Lee and Mr. Winslow, their undoubted privilege and right of speaking and giving their suffrages at a church meeting.
9thly. It also appears to us that the Rev. Mr. Frink on a par- ticular occasion unwarrantably and arbitrarily refused to put a vote in a church meeting after it was regularly proposed and seconded by some of the brethren.
rothly. It appears to us, from a great variety of testimony, that the Rev. Mr. Frink has for several years past and on different occasions discovered a remarkable and almost unexampled bitter- ness of spirit towards divers reputable persons of his pastoral charge, as well as towards other people, to the great dishonor of
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his sacred office and tending directly to alienate the affections of his flock from him, to expose him to contempt from them, and as by his own ill example in this respect to frustrate in a great measure whatever exhortations he might give them to the neces- sary duties of Christian meekness and forbearance and brotherly love, and to give such countenance to the contrary vices of pride, wrath, and a furious, ungovernable temper of mind; and we cannot but look upon it as a great aggravation of some of his intemperate speeches and railing accusations that they were at first delivered and afterwards spoken of by him as pastoral rebukes.
For the reasons aforesaid, it is the unanimous opinion of this Council, - after a public, full, and large hearing of the parties concerned and much deliberation on the premises, -
That the pastoral relation between the Rev. Mr. Frink and the church in Rutland District should be dissolved.
This advice we give, as we trust, in simplicity and the fear of God, to whom we expect to give an account, we being induced thereto by a full persuasion that, all circumstances being duly considered, there is no rational prospect of the Rev. Mr. Frink ever being serviceable to the people as a minister of the gospel, and seeing no grounds to hope that they will be wholly at peace one with another till the person who has already been the occa- sion of so much confusion and contention in this town is removed from his pastoral office.
We protest before the Searcher of hearts that we give this advice not without much reluctance and great heaviness of heart, especially when we consider the Rev. Mr. Frink's age and what we have transiently heard concerning his worldly circumstances ; when we consider the age and infirmities of his consort, and the grief it may probably occasion to his numerous family, to all of whom we sincerely wish prosperity and happiness, earnestly commending them to the blessing of Almighty God.
To the Rev. Mr. Frink himself we earnestly wish the modera- tion and wisdom calmly to consider the unhappy condition to which in our opinion he has brought himself by his own bad temper long indulged, and such a course of conduct for years together as has long given those who knew him great reason to apprehend what the issue would be. We entreat him not to think
-
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we are become his enemies because we so plainly tell him what appears to us to be the truth, and such truth as we think very nearly concerns him to seriously consider and ponder in his heart ; and we earnestly beseech Almighty God to dispose and enable him rightly to improve the present dispensation of Divine Provi- dence towards him that so, although it may not be joyous but grievous, it may in the end yield unto him the peaceable fruits of righteousness.
This beloved flock of our Lord Jesus Christ and the people in general in this place we commend to the blessing and direction of Heaven in this day of trial, earnestly exhorting them all to study the things that make for peace, and wherewith they may edify one another, that the God of peace may be with them. And we think it but a piece of justice to declare that from what we have observed during our being in, this place we think both the standing part of the church and the aggrieved have in general discovered a good and peaceable disposition, though they enter- tain different opinions concerning their pastor. We entreat them on both sides to cultivate the same good disposition by the help of God, hoping they will ere long be all joined together in the same mind to their mutual edification and comfort and to the glory of God.
To his gracious acceptance and blessing we humbly com- mend our endeavors to promote the kingdom of Christ in this place, beseeching him who has the hearts of all men in his hands to give efficacy to them for the sake of Christ Jesus, the Prince of peace, whom he hath made head over all things to the church, to whom be glory and dominion now and ever, Amen. Rutland District, June 18th, 1766.
Signed by all the members of the Council."
From the great respectability of the council, it is not to be questioned that the " Result," however painful to Mr. Frink, was according to the evidence; and we are forced to the conclusion that, whatever may have been the learning and piety of this minister of the gospel, he was disqualified by the imperiousness of his will and his choleric temper for the work of the
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ministry amongst a people so sensitive to their eccle- siastical rights, and so determined to maintain them, as this church and congregation. He meant to be abso- lute ruler, and could brook no opposition to his des- potic authority. But it is not to be forgotten that the charges against him, as far as they relate to matters of administration, might have been preferred at that day with equal justice against not a few of his brethren. Popes were then frequently seen in the ranks of the Protestant clergy; and their race is not yet quite extinct! Undoubtedly Mr. Frink carried his preten- sions farther than most others; and this, together with his violent and ungovernable temper, caused the trouble and scandal which resulted in his dismission.
After struggling for some time, aided by a few faith- ful adherents, to retain his place, notwithstanding the decision of the council, he finally gave up the contest and returned to Rutland, the field of his first ministry. Here he spent the ten remaining years of his life, - an old age which could scarcely have been peaceful save as it may have been cheered by the unwasted love of some of his early parishioners, or upheld and brightened by the tender compassions of Him whose mercy endureth for ever.
On a stone in the burying-ground near the meeting- house in Rutland may be read this brief inscrip- tion : -
" IN MEMORY
OF THE REVEREND AND LEARNED MR. THOMAS FRINK, THE FIRST SETTLED MINISTER OF RUTLAND, WHO DEPARTED THIS LIFE FOR A BETTER ON THE 2IST DAY OF AUGUST, 1777, IN THE 73D YEAR OF HIS AGE."
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And on a slate-stone slab, in the north burying-ground in this town, is the following inscription: -
" Here lies the body of Mrs. Isabel Frink, wife of Rev. Mr. Thomas Frink, and youngest daughter of Samuel Wight, Esq., late of Rutland, deceased. Descended by her mother from the Honourable Major Willard, of Lancaster, by his second wife, Isabel, sister of President Dunster. She departed this life on Monday evening, March ye 2d, A.D. 1772, in the 63d year of her age, and was interred on Thursday, March the 5th.
" Her flesh rests in hope of a happy resurrection at the last day, when this mortal shall put on immortality and death be swallowed up in vic- tory."
But other matters besides those of the church claimed the attention of the inhabitants during the period between the incorporation of the District and the dismissal of Mr. Frink. The machinery of a town was to be set up and men selected to manage it. In the township, as in the state, there must be an execu- tive. Of whom it should here consist was a question not difficult to decide. In every community, at its starting, certain men are nominated as it were by intuition. All eyes are fixed on them because all see that they are best fitted for doing the thing that is to be done. They are born leaders. When any public duty of moment is to be performed they are immedi- ately pushed to the front. Hence, in the organization of the District and the administration of its various affairs, certain names were always prominent. Un- fortunately the records of the District from 1749 to 1763 were destroyed in the fire which consumed the house of John Caldwell, Esq., the town-clerk. In the records commencing at the latter date, the name of John Caldwell still appears as town-clerk, often, also,
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as moderator of town-meetings, and sometimes as chairman of the board of selectmen. He may be judged to have been, in local affairs, the leading citi- zen. Soon there came to be associated with him Deacon John Mason, Nathan Sparhawk, Asa Hapgood, and Deacon Andrew Parker. The last named came from Lexington, and possessed many of the traits exhibited by his blood-relation of Revolutionary fame, Capt. John Parker, and also the late distinguished reformer and preacher, Theodore Parker. Under the management of these men, with the industrious co- operation of their constituents, the District advanced rapidly in population and prosperity. Forests were felled, roads were opened, streams were spanned by bridges, saw-mills turned out lumber, houses went up, harvests ripened, and, on every hand, were signs of thrift which made all hearts glad. Each year the District was re-enforced by immigrations. Those who came were strong men, the greater part in the prime of manhood, full of grit, willing to endure hardness, and bent on making cheerful homes for themselves where land was cheaper and more productive than in the towns they had left. These additions kept things lively. There was exhilaration in every step of progress towards comfort; in every house-raising and house-warming; in the sight of every new field ploughed and planted; of every fleece carded, spun, and woven; and of every addition to herd or flock.
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