To him God was a personal, living Father--a Brother born for adversity--a Friend that sticketh closer than a brother--a great and glorious Being, ever gracious, ever merciful. His trust in God was child-like in its simplicity, firm and unwavering. His conversation partook of it and was eminently realistic. He had no more doubt of God's daily, hourly, loving care and superintending providence over him and his than he had of any material fact with which he was familiar or which was self-evident to him. He entirely realized that God was his ever present friend. There seemed to be that close, intimate union--reverent and humble as it was on his part--of man with God, and this gave a living reality to religion in his life. To him the counsels, the warnings, the promises; the encouragements of the Bible, were the voice of God speaking to him personally--the very words came as living words from the lips of God, "as a man speaketh to his friend." This was the secret of his courage, whether it was in some crisis of conflict or controversy, or in his little frail craft when crossing the lake, or exposed to the storm.
To such a man death had no terrors--the heart had no fear. It was cheering and comforting to listen to him (as I often did alone) and to hear him speak of his near departure, as of one preparing for a journey--ceasing from duty, in order to be ready to be conveyed away, and then resuming it when the journey was over.
Thus he spoke of the time of his departure as at hand, and he was ready for the messenger when He should call for him. He spoke of it trustfully, hopefully, cheerfully, neither anxious nor fearful; and yet, on the other hand, neither elated nor full of joy; but he knew in whom He had trusted, and was persuaded, and was not afraid of evil tidings either of the dark valley or the river of death. He knew Him whom he believed, and was persuaded that He was able to keep that which he had committed unto Him against that day.
Thus the end drew near, and with it, as the outward man began to fail, the feeling of unwavering trust and confidence was deepened and strengthened. At length hearing failed, and the senses one by one partially ceased to perform their functions. Then to him were fully realized the inspired words of Solomon: Desire failed, and the silver cord was loosed, the golden bowl was broken, the pitcher broken at the fountain, and the wheel at the cistern. Gradually the weary wheels of life stood still, and at seven o'clock on Sunday morning, February 19th, 1882, in the presence of his loved ones and dear friends, gently and peacefully the spirit of Egerton Ryerson took its flight to be forever with the Lord!
Servant of God, well done!
Thy glorious warfare's past; The battle's fought, the vict'ry won, And thou art crowned at last;
Of all thy heart's desire Triumphantly possessed; Lodged by the sweet angelic choir In thy Redeemer's breast.
In condescending love, Thy ceaseless prayer He heard; And bade thee suddenly remove To this complete reward.
O happy, happy soul!
In ecstacies of praise, Long as eternal ages roll, Thou seest thy Saviour's face.
Redeemed from earth and pain, Ah! when shall we ascend, And all in Jesus' presence reign With our translated friend?
CHAPTER LXVI.
1882.
The Funeral Ceremonies, Wednesday, Feb. 22nd, 1882.
Amid the tolling of bells, said the Toronto _Globe_, and the lamentations of many thousands of people, the remains of the late Rev.
Dr. Ryerson were conveyed to their final earthly resting-place in Mount Pleasant Cemetery, on Wednesday, the 22nd February. During the day large numbers visited the sorrowing house, and gazed for the last time on the features of the revered dead. As was to be expected, the larger number were, like the venerable deceased, far into "the sere and yellow leaf,"
and many who had known him for a long time could scarce restrain the unbidden tear as a flood of recollections surged up at the sight of the still form cold in death.
No one present, probably, says the _Guardian_, ever saw so many ministers at a funeral. Among the ministers and laymen were many grey-haired veterans, who had watched with interest the whole brilliant career of the departed.... All the Churches were well represented, both by their ministers and prominent laymen. Bishop Sweatman and most of the ministers of the Church of England were present. Nearly all the Presbyterian, Baptist, and Congregational ministers of the city were present; and even Archbishop Lynch and Father McCann, of the Roman Catholic Church, showed their respect for the dead by their presence during the day. Devotional service at the house was conducted by Rev. R.
Jones, of Cobourg, and Rev. J. G. Laird, of Collingwood.
The plate on the coffin bore the inscription:--"Egerton Ryerson born 21st March, 1803: died 19th February, 1882." The floral tributes presented by sorrowing friends were from various places in Ontario, and not a few came from Detroit and other American cities. The following may be noted:--Wreath, with "Norfolk" in the centre, from Mr. E. Harris; wreath, with "Rest" in the centre, from Dr. and Mrs. Hodgins; pillow, with "Father," from Mrs. E. Harris; crown from the scholars of Ryerson school; pillow, with "Grandpapa," from the grandchildren of the deceased: wreath from Mr. C. H. Greene; cross, also scythe, with sheaf, from Mr. and Mrs. George Harris, London; crown and cross from Rev. Dr.
and Mrs. Potts; anchor from W. E. and F. E. Hodgins; sheaf from George S. Hodgins; lilies and other choice flowers inside the casket from Dr.
and Mrs. Hodgins.
Shortly before three o'clock the room was left to the members of the family, after which the coffin was borne to the hearse by the following pall-bearers, preceded by the Rev. Dr. Potts:--Dr. Hodgins, Rev. Dr.
Nelles, Dr. Aikins, Rev. Dr. Rose, Rev. R. Jones, Mr. J. Paterson.
Previous to the arrival of the hearse at the church, His Honour the Lieutenant-Governor, the Speaker of the House, members of the Legislature, which had adjourned for the occasion, and the Ministerial Association, were in the places assigned to them. The members of the City Council and Board of Education were also present in a body. The pupils of Ryerson and Dufferin Schools marched into the church in a body, wearing mourning badges on their arms. There were representatives of all conditions in society, and it might be said of all ages. The lisping schoolboy who was free from the restraint imposed by the presence of his master; and the aged man and woman tottering unsteadily on the verge of the grave--all were hushed in the presence of death.
Everywhere within the building were the evidences of a great sorrow.
Crape was seen wherever the eye turned--surrounding the galleries, fronting the platform, encircling the choir. But there was one spot thrown into _alto relievo_ by the sombre drapery of woe. In front of the pulpit, on a small table, were the exquisitely beautiful floral tributes of friendship and affection, whispering of the beauty and glory of that spring-time of the human race, when this "mortal shall have put on immortality."
Cobourg and Victoria College were well represented; the Rev. T. W.
Jeffery and Wm. Kerr, Q.C., and others, being present; also the following professors and students from Victoria College:--Rev. Dr.
Nelles, Prof. Burwash, Prof. Reynard, Prof. Bain, Mr. McHenry (Collegiate Institute), and Dr. Jones. The students from the College--one from each class--were Messrs. Stacey, Horning, Eldridge, Brewster, and Crews. The Senate of Victoria University walked in a body immediately after the carriages containing the mourners. Upon entering the west aisle of the church, Rev. Dr. Potts commenced reading the burial service, the vast audience standing. The pall-bearers having deposited their charge in front of the pulpit, Rev. Mr. Cochran gave out the 733rd hymn,
"Come, let us join our friends above, Who have obtained the prize."
Rev. Dr. Rose offered prayer, after which Rev. Wm. Scott, of Montreal Conference, read a portion of the 1st Cor. xv., commencing at the 20th verse. The choir of fifty voices, led by the organist, Mr. Torrington, sang an anthem--
"Brother, thou art gone before us"
Rev. Mr. Telfer, from England, gave out the 42nd hymn, which was fervently sung by the congregation. The Rev. Dr. Potts then delivered the following funeral address:--
My place of choice on this deeply sorrowful occasion would be in the ranks of the mourners, for I feel like a son bereft of his father.
Gladly would I sit at the feet of aged ministers before me, and listen to them speak of one they knew and loved so well. I venture to address a few words to you, in fulfilment of the dying request of my reverend and honoured father in the Gospel.
Regarding the well-known wishes of the departed, my words must be few and simple. To-day, Methodism, in her laity and ministry mourns over the death of her most illustrious minister and Church leader. To-day, many in this house, and far beyond Toronto, lament the loss of an ardent and true friend. To-day, Canada mourns the decease of one of her noblest sons. This is not the time nor the place for mere eulogy; in the presence of death and of God eulogy is unbecoming. We would glorify God in the character and in the endowments of his servant and child.
We cannot, we should not, forget the greatness of the departed. His was a many-sided greatness. Dr. Ryerson would have been great in any walk in life. In law he would have been a Chief Justice. In statesmanship he would have been a Prime Minister. He was a born leader of his fellows.
He was kingly in carriage and in character. The stamp of royal manhood was impressed upon him physically, mentally, morally. We cannot forget the distinguished positions occupied so worthily and so long by our departed friend. He lived for his country, spending and being spent in the educational and moral advancement of the people.
As a servant of Methodism, he was a missionary to the Indians of this Province, an evangelist to the scattered settlers, and a pastor in this city long, long ago. He was President of Victoria College, and never ceased to love and support that institution of learning. For it he solicited money in England and in this country, and to it he gave the intellectual energy of his early manhood, as well as ranking in the front place as a personal subscriber to its funds. He was the first Editor of the _Christian Guardian_, the connexional organ of our branch of Methodism.
As a servant of Canada, he was for over thirty years Chief Superintendent of Education in this Province. His monument--more enduring than brass--is the Public School system of Ontario. When the history of this country comes to be written, the name, the imperishable name of Egerton Ryerson shall shine in radiant lustre as one of the greatest men produced in this land.
But it is not of these things Dr. Ryerson would have me speak if he could direct my thoughts to-day. Rather would have me speak of him as a sinner saved by grace, as a disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ. I knew him well in his religious life. His experience was marked by scriptural simplicity, and his conversation was eminently spiritual. Of all the ministers of my acquaintance, none spoke with me so freely and so frequently on purely religious subjects as the venerable Dr. Ryerson. He gloried in the cross of Christ. He never wearied speaking of the precious blood of the Lamb. He was one of the most helpful and sympathetic hearers in the Metropolitan Church congregation. Rarely, in my almost six years' pastorate, did he leave the church without entering the vestry and saying a kindly, encouraging word.
The doctor belonged to a class of men rapidly passing away. Most of his companions passed on before him. But few linger behind. Grand men they were in Church and State. Canada owes them a debt of gratitude that she can hardly ever pay. Let us revere the memory of those gone to their rest and reward, and let us treat with loving reverence the few pioneers who still linger to bless the land for which they have done so much. We may have a higher average in these times, but we lack the heroic men who stood out so conspicuously in the early history of Canada.
Dr. Ryerson was a Methodist, but not a narrow sectarian. He knew the struggles of our Church in this country, and shared them; he witnessed, with gratitude to God, the extension of Methodism from feeble beginnings to its present influential position. He desired above all things that our Church should retain the primitive simplicity of the olden time, and yet march abreast of the age in the elements of a Christian civilization.
At the first General Conference which met in this church, after the Union, and after that eminently providential event, the introduction of laymen into the highest Court of the Church--at that time, when the representatives of both ministry and membership desired a man to preside over the Methodist Church of Canada, to whom did they look? To the man whom Methodism delighted to honour--Egerton Ryerson.
Dr. Ryerson was regarded by the congregation belonging to this church with peculiar respect and affection. While he belonged to all Canada, we, of the Metropolitan Church, claimed him as our own especial possession. He was a trustee of the Church, and one of its most liberal supporters; for its prosperity he ever prayed, and in its success he ever rejoiced. It is hard to realize that we shall no longer see that venerable form--that genial and intellectual countenance.
The life of Dr. Ryerson was long, whether you measure it by years or by service--service to his God, to his fellow-men, and to his native land.
He was a shock of corn ripe for the heavenly garner. He was an heir, having reached his majority, and made meet for the inheritance of the saints in light, has gone to take possession of it. He was a pilgrim, who after a lengthened pilgrimage has reached home. He was a Christian, who with Paul could say, "For me to live is Christ, to die is gain." In such an hour as this, what comfort could all the honours of man give to the sorrowing family as compared with the thought that the one they loved so dearly was a man in Christ and is now a glorified spirit before the throne. Henceforth we must think of him and speak of him as the late Dr. Ryerson, and to many of us this shall be difficult and painful. We have been so accustomed to see and hear him, we have so long looked up to him as one specially gifted to lead, that a sad feeling comes over us, left as we are without the guidance of our beloved leader and father in the Church. The memory of the just is blessed, and our memory of Dr.
Ryerson shall be precious, until we overtake him in the better country, that is the heavenly. Until then let us not be slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Could he speak to us to-day from the heights of the heavenly glory to which he has just been admitted, he would say to this vast concourse of friends, "Follow Christ; seek first the kingdom of God; serve your generation; build up in your Dominion a nationality based on righteousness and truth; be strict in your judgment upon yourselves, but be charitable in your judgment of others; live that your end may be peace, and your immortality eternal blessedness."
Dr. Potts concluded by reading the following extract from a letter written by Dr. Ormiston, of New York, to Dr. Hodgins:--
Dear Dr. Ryerson, I mourn thee as a son for a father. Thou wert very dear to me. I owe thee much. I loved as I esteemed thee. I have no one left now to fill thy place in my heart and life. Through riches of Divine grace I hope soon to meet thee again. My dear Brother Hodgins--You and I knew our noble-hearted friend better than most, and to know him was to love him. You have been longer and more intimately associated with him in social life and earnest work than I was. But I scarcely think that even you loved him more, and I feel as if I was hardly even second to you in his regards. Let our tears fall together to-day, and in each of our hearts let his memory live ever fresh and fondly cherished.
Hymn 624, "Rock of Ages, cleft for me," was then sung, after which prayer was offered and the benediction was pronounced by the Rev. J. G.
Laird, President of the Toronto Conference. A musical voluntary and the "Dead March" concluded the impressive service.
The remains were then borne to Mount Pleasant Cemetery, where they were afterwards interred.[150] The concluding portion of the burial service was read by the Rev. Dr. Nelles.
On the following Sunday the funeral sermon was preached by Rev. Dr.
Nelles. The _Guardian_ said:--
The discourse of Dr. Nelles was a masterly and eloquent review of the salient points in Dr. Ryerson's life and character. We have rarely listened to a sermon with greater satisfaction, and never to a funeral sermon so discriminating in its statements and characterization. It was distinguished by a broad mental grasp of the great lessons and facts of history, in the light of which all personal and local events must be viewed, to be seen truly and impartially. His appreciative recognition of the privileges of religious equality which we possess in Canada, and of the prominent part taken by Dr. Ryerson in obtaining them, was very suggestive and felicitous. We rarely follow to the grave so eminent a man as Dr. Ryerson; and we seldom have heard a discourse so fully equal to a great occasion.