Abbildungen der Seite
PDF
EPUB

CHAPTER TWELFTH.

New Rochelle-The Rev. Daniel Bondet-His history in a few words-The first French Church and minister in New Rochelle-Mr. Bondet becomes a missionary of the SocietyGradual transformation of his congregation-Their final adoption of the English Prayer-book-New church builtMr. Pelham's gift-Death of the missionary-The Rev. Mr. Stouppe-His troubles as recited by himself The Rev. Michael Houdin-A romantic history-Guide for General Wolfe-Becomes the guide of the flock at New RochelleCharter from George III.-Mr. Houdin's death.

EW ROCHELLE was settled by French Protestants, and here the Rev. Daniel Bondet, a French clergyman, officiated for several years, supported by the voluntary contributions of the people, and an allowance of about one hundred and fifty dollars from the government of New York.

Mr. Bondet had fled from his native country to England, on the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, and received Ordination at the hands of Dr. Henry Compton, Bishop of London. In 1686, he came to Massachusetts with a company of French emigrants, and, for eight

years, was employed in ministering among the Indians at a place called New Oxford, not far from Boston, and also in preaching to his own countrymen.

From Massachusetts he removed to Westchester, where he became the pastor of the French church. The first place of worship here was built by the Huguenots in 1692, and the Rev. David Bonrepos, D.D., who accompanied them in their flight from France, was their clergyman for some time after their settlement at New Rochelle.

In 1704, Mr. Bondet was recommended to the Society, by the clergy of New York, as a most proper person to be employed as a missionary, having done more, as they say, "to convert the heathen, than any Protestant minister that we know." The appointment was accordingly made, and he began to use the Prayer-book of the English Church on every third Sunday, the French prayers, according to the Protestant Churches of France, being employed at other times. And so the transformation gradually went on, until in 1709 the whole congregation, with the exception of two persons, conformed to the English Church.

"Mr. Bondet" (says Humphrey in his history of the Propagation Society), "had a large con

MR. BONDET'S DEATH.

99

gregation, and commonly about fifty communicants. The church they used was now become ruinous, and the inhabitants of the place, and members of the Church increased. They began to gather voluntary contributions to build a new church, and about the year 1711 got a sufficient sum, and erected a small church. Some time after, a worthy gentleman, Mr. John Pelham, lord of the manor of Pelham (of which New Rochelle is a part), gave one hundred acres of land within the said manor for the use of the Church. The town of Rochelle gave a house and three acres of land, adjoining the church, to the minister forever. Mr. Bondet persevered with his former care, in all parts of his office, till the year 1722, in which he died, much lamented by his parish. He was a plain, sober man, and had been minister of that parish above twenty years. He bequeathed to the town, for the use of the minister, his library, amounting to four hundred volumes of books."

Mr. Bondet's successor was the Rev. Pierre Stouppe, who thus writes to the secretary in 1725:

"There are yet thirty families unconformed within New Rochelle bounds, and were it not for fear of the eager censures of Mr. Moulinars,

one of the French ministers of New York, who comes quarterly among them, and some of the most creditable members of his congregation, who, jointly with him, do support their separation from the Church, all those yet dissenting families, without exception, would have been come over to it already. The proceeding is so unjust that I cannot forbear to complain of it, and set down to the consideration of the honorable Society, some of the arguments they make use of to keep the dissenting inhabitants of New Rochelle in their division from the Church, and even to pervert, if possible, its truest defenders. They not only, at all occasions, inspire them with a disadvantageous opinion of the Church of England, but they rail in a plain manner at its Liturgy and ceremonies. The said Mr. Moulinars has declared (as can be proved), that he finds our Church and that of Rome as like one another as two fishes can be; besides, the said minister and his party have threatened the yet dissenting French inhabitants of New Rochelle of breaking with them all commerce, and of suspending all acts of charity and support towards them, if ever they should dare to join themselves at any time to the Church; nay, for instance, the said Moulinars and his party, convinced long

TROUBLES OF MR. STOUPPE.

101

ago of Mr. Roux, the other minister of the French in New York, and his inclination and good affection to the Church, and of his always openly blaming and disapproving Mr. Moulinars, his colleague's, irregular practices against the Church in general, and especially his keeping up and fomenting our unhappy divisions in New Rochelle. The said Moulinars and his party, in revenge, have pretended to depose Mr. Roux, and suspend him accordingly of all his accustomed ministerial functions among them, as you may see it more largely in this collection of papers on that subject, which I beg of you to put into the honorable Society's hands, and which will justify in general the matters I here acquaint them with. They will find that one of the chiefest reasons of this violence against Mr. Roux, has no other ground than his constant affection to the Church, and the public approbation he has at all times and occasions given to its ceremonies and doctrine; and this affair is so far gone that the honorable Council of this province could not forbear to take notice and to interpose their mediation and authority, which having been unsuccessful on the French dissenter's part, Mr. Roux intends, by the advice of his friends, to carry his complaints into

« ZurückWeiter »