ART. V.-Autobiography of the Rev. William Walford. Edited, with a Continuation, by JOHN HOUGHTON. London, 1851.

THAT which entitles this volume to notice beyond the circle of private friendship, and of religious connexion, is not only the peculiarity of the case of suffering which is described in it, but the rare circumstance that such a case should be narrated and described by the sufferer himself, and he, too, a man of superior intelligence and many accomplishments. It is natural to think that some advantage should be taken of an instance of this sort when it occurs, tending perhaps to the furtherance of science; perhaps to the strengthening or illustration of some principle in morals.

The late Rev. William Walford was an esteemed minister of the Congregational order; and during many years was Resident and Classical Tutor of the Independent College, Homerton—a colleague, therefore, of Dr. John Pye Smith, that ornament of the Dissenting ministry. Mr. Walford was a man of clear intellect, sound judgment, and, one may say, of metaphysical turn. His religious history, as given by himself, with much modesty and ingenuousness, cannot be perused without receiving from it an impression very favourable as to his personal seriousness, and the elevation and purity of his character as a Christian man. He has become known as a religious writer and biblical critic;* and as a tutor he is gratefully remembered by those who were his pupils.

Mr. Walford commenced his religious life in a manner-we must here refer our readers to the volume-which carried with it to himself a powerful and permanent conviction of its derivation from on high. He felt and knew that in his case certainly, "faith was not of himself," it was "the gift of God." This persuasion as to the source and the reality of his spiritual existence, it is well to notice. Conjoined with this characteristic of his personal religious feelings, was an early-developed propensity, following him through life, to attempt-with restless and fruitless assiduity, a solution, never by finite minds to be attained, of the problem of the origin of evil. We note this fact in this place, merely as it enters into a due consideration of the case

* Mr. Walford's publications are-The Manner of Prayer. The Book of Psalms: a new Translation, with Notes. Cura Romana: a revised Translation of the Epistle to the Romans; and, A Catechism of Christian Ecidences, Truths, and Duties.

Early Indications of Disease.

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before us. Speaking of an early stage of his religious course, Mr. Walford says he was then in his eighteenth year—

"Suddenly I was thrown into extreme agitation, by observing the universal prevalence of moral and physical evil over the whole race of mankind. An inquiry concerning the cause of this desolating calamity immediately engaged my attention. All other considerations. were suspended, that I might, if it were practicable, gain some satisfaction on the solemn and mysterious subject. The more, however, I meditated on it, the more incompetent I found myself to devise a solution. I was altogether ignorant that the question of the existence (origin) of evil is one of all ages, and of all thoughtful men; and I was equally ignorant of the discordant theories that have been devised to account for the frightful phenomenon."-P. 46.

It was, in fact, this one subject and this perplexity that constituted throughout life the nucleus of the mental sufferings of which, from physical causes, he was the victim: it demands, therefore, to be noted in taking account of those sufferings. At times they reduced him to "a state of despair, bordering on insanity." Now and then, he says, "the cloud broke for a brief interval, when I was consoled by a hope that the darkness would be dispelled, if not sooner, yet by the bright discoveries of the heavenly state." He had, however, so far attained a due religious tranquillity, as to exercise the Christian ministry with acceptance and advantage to others and comfort to himself for a course of years. At length a malady which from early life had more or less affected him, became so much aggravated as to induce him to surrender the pastoral office, much to the regret of his congregation, at Great Yarmouth. He thus introduces this sub

ject:

"I have hitherto said nothing of an insidious malady by which, from a very early age, I was often very grievously affected, but of the nature and causes of which I was altogether ignorant, though its effects were inexpressibly painful. This malady had shewn itself chiefly by almost incessant headaches from my infancy; but soon after my settlement at Yarmouth it assumed a new form. I was attacked by paroxysms of despondency, which, during their continuance, rendered. life a burden almost intolerable. I could give no account of the reasons of such disquietude, and was at a loss to devise any probable means of relief."-P. 147.

A journey on horse-back brought some relief, but these sufferings recurred frequently during the course of the fourteen years passed by Mr. Walford at Yarmouth.

"With almost every source of happiness open to me," Mr. Walford was happy in his home and congregation,—“I was often for

months together more wretched than I can describe. My prospects were darkened by the thickest clouds; all things, present and future, were encompassed with fear and dread. Taciturnity, irritability of temper, an unnatural and diseased sensibility of conscience, and such a degree of indolent lassitude as rendered every mental occupation distasteful, increased over me to such a degree as to alarm me lest the sanity of my mind should be subverted. At times my thoughts were so agitated, and my conceptions so disturbed, as to make me apprehensive that some foreign invisible agency was acting upon me. Imaginations of the most extraordinary nature often darted upon me with such rapidity as left me without control over them."-P. 148.

The sufferer had recourse to various means for diverting his thoughts, but in vain.

"Often I wandered about the fields and country, driven from my occupation and my home by unutterable anguish; lingering in unfrequented lanes, and hanging on gates and stiles, pouring out frantic and broken supplications to God to have mercy upon me. Not seldom, I was alarmed lest, in spite of myself, I should abandon all religion, and become an infidel or atheist. I dared not disclose to any the condition of my feelings, lest I should be taken for such, or for a madman. My pious, cheerful, and affectionate wife was but too sensible that some sad cause of disquietude preyed upon me; but for several years I replied to her anxious inquiries merely, that my spirits were low and depressed, from what cause I knew not. If these torturing paroxysins had not been relieved by frequent intervals, I must necessarily have relinquished my profession, as it was with inexpressible difficulty I performed its duties, while they were forcibly pressed upon me. So extraordinary, however, was my state, that during the intermissions I experienced I was often cheerful and even gay; I lost sight of my sorrows, and was astonished at myself that I could ever be so painfully affected. This alternation of feeling, altogether unaccountable to me, continued to actuate me through the whole period of my residence in Yarmouth."-P. 149.

In the hope that change of scene and occupation might bring relief, Mr. Walford had accepted an invitation to become resident tutor at Homerton Academy, and for a while the engagements of this new position had the desired effect; but after a while the malady returned in full force, and his mind returned in despair upon its perplexities concerning the origin of evil. Medical aid was resorted to, but with no effect; and the gloom which had so long clouded the mind was deepened to anguish by the death of a beloved daughter. Mr. Walford's distress on this occasion is especially to be noted, as one among several indications clearly distinguishing his malady from what it might seem to resemble-insanity. The insane seldom grieve in any such manner, or on such occasions. The following passage is very significant, regarded as a feature of the case:

The

"The influence of the two kinds of distress by which I was affected differed as much as the causes of it did. My own peculiar sufferings never softened my heart-never drew a tear from my eyes; I was unable to weep though I often passionately desired to do so. grief I felt during the time my child was daily sinking to death, and immediately following, vented itself in floods of tears, that seemed to exhaust my whole nature and render me incapable of repressing them." -P. 170.

The unabated pressure of this affliction at length induced Mr. Walford to retire from his position at Homerton, and to seclude himself entirely from the world.

"I began to shut myself up in solitude, as walking or riding through the streets made me feel as though every one I met was acquainted with my wickedness and misery. I could not endure to look any one in the face; and ere long the sight of my own face filled me with fear and aversion, as I considered myself to be wholly a reprobate-forsaken of God, and odious to man."-P. 179.

During four years after his retirement from Homerton this distress went on increasing; and descriptions of these sufferings fill pages of this Memoir. Sometimes a passionate impulse to pray seized the sufferer and rendered him almost frantic; but more often devotional exercises were intolerable to him. His books were disposed of that the sight of them might not torment him. "I earnestly wished," he says, " that I had never learned to read or write." The voices of his family inflicted agony upon him, as well as the light of day, and the sight of ornamental furniture, especially of looking-glasses; and his dress and personal appearance were neglected. The irritability of his temper being such that he fully expected that he should some day murder some of the inmates of the house.

"The agitation and restlessness that affected me were so great that I was unable to sit down, as the moment in which I attempted to do so brought an increase of misery; and I was thus kept pacing up and down my parlour from the time of getting up until going to bed. I was so intensely wearied by this incessant going to and fro as frequently to scream with anguish. In consequence of this painful excitement I seldom rose from my bed before noon, as I was able to continue this posture without additional pain. At night, when

endeavouring to compose myself to rest I was often roused to vigilance by convulsive startings, which no sooner ceased than the most hideous appearances of monstrous face and shape would pass before me, to free myself from which I was constrained to keep my eyes open, that the real objects about me might dispel those of my disordered imagination."-P. 186.

A friend had advised Mr. Walford to divert his thoughts with

chess or bagatelle. At first he rejected the idea with scorn, but at length, having made the experiment, he found it avail for enabling him to sit during the day. He therefore called for the board as soon as he came down stairs in the morning, and insisted that his wife or niece should play the whole day, until it was time to retire for sleep. In this manner he played thousands of games. At length he happily discovered that he could play backgammon without a partner.

Relief, however, at length arrived, yet not by the aid of medicine or any new means of recovery. Whether the change in the sufferer's habits should be regarded as the symptom of an incipient. restoration, or as the cause of it, it is not easy to determine. First came a disposition to leave the house and walk after nightfall, when he could be unobserved; then a resumption of his habit of smoking; next a return to books-and anxious to avoid any that might recall religious ideas, the first he selected was Baines' "History of the Cotton Manufacture," and next, Babbage's "Economy of Manufactures," both which he epitomized; and he then commenced a translation of Herodotus. It is manifest that a spontaneous cure was at this time in progress, and had advanced so far that a mere accident sufficed to enable mind and body (so to speak) to cast off the slough of disease which still encrusted both. He was invited on a fine morning in May to take a drive:

"The verdure of the grass, trees, and country in general, with the fineness of the weather, so affected me, that all my fears, disquietudes, and sorrows, vanished as if by a miracle, and I was well!-entirely relieved, and filled with a transport of delight, such as I had never before experienced. My hope and confidence in God were restored, and all my dreary expectations of destroying myself or others were entirely forgotten. On my return home from this reviving excursion every desire to shut myself up and exclude my friends was departed, and I could with difficulty restrain myself from being always abroad." -P. 193.

This recovery was permanent for a length of years; and Mr. Walford, some time after he had regained comfort and health, took charge of a small congregation at Uxbridge. In reflecting upon what he had suffered he thought he detected the physical cause of his malady. He mentions the circumstance of his having been liable from childhood to frequent attacks of headache, which increased in intensity up to about the twenty-second or twenty-third year of his age, at which time he became liable to a discharge of fetid mucus from one nostril. The opinion of Mr. Cline, whom he consulted, was, that an ulcer had formed in the frontal sinus, on one side. But the remedies applied by this eminent surgeon, who, as it appears, misunderstood the case, did