UNIVERSALISM IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.
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��and the people generally, were induced to hear what could be said in favor of the "new doctrine," as it was called. The consequence was hundreds, if not thou- sands, embraced the faith. Not long af- ter his proclamation of the great Resti- tution in that part of the State, several Orthodox clergymen became Universal- ists. Of these were Dickenson of Wal- pole, Foster of Charlestown, Taft of Langdon, and Mann and Mead of Alstead. The two first mentioned wrote able works in favor of universal salvation, and to this day there is in each of these four towns a Universalist or Unitarian society. Another name of eminence must be in- troduced here, that of one of the distin- guished advocates of this faith in New Hampshire and throughout the country. Hosea Ballou was a native of this State, born in the town of Richmond, April 30, 1771. His father, Rev. Maturin Ballou, was the pastor of the Baptist church in that town, and, when quite a young man, Hosea became a member of his father's church. But soon after this, when he was but eighteen years old, solely from reading his Bible, as he says, he became a Universalist. He commenced to preach in 1791, and continued till 1852, the year of his death, which took place in Boston, the place of his settled ministry after 1817. He was a man of profound intel- lect, and great simplicity and purity of character. He was listened to by many thousands in New Hampshire, and proba- bly did more than any one of his prede- cessors or contemporaries in the minis- try, by his preaching and writings, to lead the thinking minds of the present generation, to rest in the belief of the ultimate salvation of the world.
In 1803 the "•General Convention of Uni- versalists of the New England States, and others," held its annual session in the town of Winchester, in this State, at which meeting a brief creed, or profes- sion of faith, was discussed and adopted. It was as follows :
1. We believe that the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments contain a revelation of the character of God, and of the duty, interest and final destiny of mankind.
2. We believe that there is one God, whose nature is love, revealed in one
��Lord Jesus Christ by one Holy Spirit of grace, who will finally restore the whole family of mankind to holiness and hap- piness.
3. We believe that holiness and true happiness are inseparably connected, and that believers ought to be careful to main- tain order and practice good works ; tor these things are good and profitable unto men.
The above profession of faith is com- prehensive and explicit, and has been generally acceptable to the denomina- tion. But for one circumstance, how- ever^ written creed would not have been adopted at that time by the denomina- tion. The Bible, it was thought, was a sufficient creed. That circumstance was that it became necessary, at the com- mencement of this century, to adopt a profession of faith to save' Universalists in New England, and especially in New Hampshire, from great oppression.
The "Standing Order' 1 ' 1 had a legal right to tax every individual in the par- ish lor the support of the clergy, and the only remedy the individual had to avoid paying snch tax to them was to join some other sect and bring a certificate from them to the Standing Order that he had joined that society and actually paid taxes to them. This had been done in one or more cases in New Hampshire, but. nevertheless, the Standing Order proceeded to collect the taxes. Resist- ance was made, and the case was finally carried up to the Supreme Court, which decided that there was no such order known as Universalists, for they had no creed or profession of faith to distinguish them from the Standing Order, and they were consequently compelled to pay
taxes to them. By adopting this profession of faith, a
very important impediment was removed and Universalists were encouraged to make earnest endeavors to provide them- selves with places of worship and the ministry of the gospel. But there were other impediments to their growth and prosperity. Like the primitive Chris- tians, they were a "sect everywhere spoken against." The Baptists, when they started, were persecuted by the old- .er sect, but still they held the same points of doctrine in every respect except that of immersion. They were triuitari-
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